Using Surveillance to Make Life Easier?

Posted: 2/23/2017

Are you willing to give up your right to privacy in exchange for convenience?  Is there a line that you are not willing to allow the government or even private companies to cross?  Your privacy is constantly invaded in some form or fashion every day.  Data is collected on you whether you know it or not, whether you give your permission or not.

Here are just a few instances of how surveillance and data collection are currently being implemented without your knowledge:

1. New York – New recognition technology is counting every single pedestrian in New York.  Check out this video about how traffic cameras and algorithms are revealing amazing data about millions of pedestrians in New York City: http://www.cnn.com/videos/tech/2014/05/25/cot-nyc-surveillance.cnn/video/playlists/city-of-tomorrow/ 
   
   Do you have concerns about the data that is being collected without your permission? Who is collecting the data?  How is the data being protected?  Is the data being sold, and if so, to whom and for what purpose?
    
2. LAPD – The LAPD (and other jurisdictions) is using license plate readers and data mining technology with CIA roots (Palantir).   Check out this video about how license plate readers are gathering data and the issues surrounding it: http://www.cnn.com/videos/tech/2014/05/25/cot-la-license-plates.cnn/video/playlists/city-of-tomorrow/
   
   Does the fact that data is being collected on you whether you know it or not, whether you are a criminal or not, concern you?
    
3. Baltimore – Baltimore’s “Secret Cameras” record every move from the sky: https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2016-baltimore-secret-surveillance/
   
   Since the beginning of 2016, the Baltimore Police Department has been using a small Cessna airplane equipped with a sophisticated array of cameras to circle Baltimore. The plane’s wide-angle cameras capture an area of roughly 30 square miles and continuously transmit real-time images to analysts on the ground. The footage from the plane is instantly archived and stored on massive hard drives, allowing analysts to review it weeks later if necessary.to investigate all sorts of crimes, from property thefts to shootings. The Cessna sometimes flies above the city for as many as 10 hours a day, and the public has no idea it is there.
   
    

Featured in Bloomberg Businessweek, Aug. 29-Sept. 4, 2016.