CCTV's might destroy our privacy, but at least they prevent violent crime

[Donegeal]

Originally posted by notyoueither


Do you ever take a peek at people who you are about to rent to?

Yeah, of course, but the info I look at is public record. So, it seems that, atleast as far as my example, you have nothing to worry about unless you know a cop (and generally make an impression on him/her).

[notyoueither]

... unless you know someone who has access to the databases and makes improper use of them...

Can you see why people might be uneasy about larger databases with more information and wider access among people who work for the government?

[VetLegion]

Originally posted by Sava
Can someone explain to me how having cameras in public is an invasion of privacy?

It isn't.

[Straybow]

Oh God. I hope they catch the bastards and beat them into unconsciousness. For resisting arrest (at least that's what the report will say).

[Sava]

Originally posted by VetLegion


It isn't.

Some people seem to think that it is. That's why I'm confused.

[C0ckney]

sava, it's more the fact that they're a symptom of what our society is becoming. namely one where every move you make, everything you do, creates information that is recorded by some part of the state. i find this very worrying and i'm not alone.

also as VJ pointed out they don't achieve their stated aim of improving public safety, as they seem to be increasingly used as a (poor) substitute for real police doing real police work.

[Cort Haus]

When our block had a spate of break-ins a few years back the question was asked whether the cameras on the street could be used to investigate the crimes. Apparantly not was the answer, as they could only be used to issue parking fines.

[BeBMan]

Originally posted by C0ckney
sava, it's more the fact that they're a symptom of what our society is becoming. namely one where every move you make, everything you do, creates information that is recorded by some part of the state. i find this very worrying and i'm not alone.

Not disagreeing, I'm just wondering if private companies don't collect and trade even more personal data for various reasons then "the state".....

[C0ckney]

Originally posted by BeBro

Not disagreeing, I'm just wondering if private companies don't collect and trade even more personal data for various reasons then "the state".....

i think it's a question of what sort of information is held and whether you have a real choice in giving it to them.

take something like a tesco store card, you use it to build up points for each item you buy and these translate into discounts, the information collected is a record of everything you buy in that store (or any tesco store). there are other examples of course, you have to give information to obtain certain products and services or when you use a bank card to make purchases. many such things that we do everyday give information to private companies.

with the government, and by that i really mean the state, i give them information for things like tax and to access services, i also generate data they can use in my everyday life, for example if i walk past a CCTV camera. within a few years however, i will generate information every time i use my car, for road pricing. in addition i will have to have an ID card which will contain an awful lot of information about me, which will be contained on a large database, accessible by 100,000s.

some data i am forced, not in the gun to the head sense, but in the to live a comfortable life sense, to give to private companies, but i can mostly limit this to an amount i consider reasonable. i can choose not to have a tesco clubcard (i don't have one - or any other store card FWIW), with the only ill effect being paying a few pence more for my groceries. if i really wanted i could simply withdraw all my salary every month from the bank in cash so that no one could track where i spend my money, which wouldn't have any real impact on my life. it's a choice, if i want some goods or a service but feel that signing up would have an adverse impact on my privacy, i can weight the benefit of having that item or service against the negative impact of giving the necessary information. the key issue for me is that it's my choice and i'm free to make it within reason.

with state actors it's much harder and there is little or no choice. of course i would like to not pay tax but i realise that i have to and that it's reasonable that i do so (even if the amount isn't - but that's another thread!). i also understand why for example my doctor will need to have a fair bit of information about me on record, to do his job effectively. however with the road pricing that will come in, i will be forced to submit information (through a 'black box' or some sort of camera tracking system) about every journey i make. i have to drive. i could not live my life in anything like a comfortable way if i could not, so i will be forced into accepting it, even though i believe it is a totally unjustified and unreasonable invasion of my privacy. the same is true of ID cards, at first they'll be voluntary, you'll need one to get a passport though, ok i've never been abroad, so not a massive loss for me. however as the years go by the government will make it progressively harder for people not to have an ID card, for the simple reason that there's no point having a system like the proposed one, if large numbers of people can abstain from it. so at some point my life will become too difficult to lead without an ID card and i will be forced to get one, even though again, i object in the strongest terms.

i hope this makes some sense.

[kittenOFchaos]

Originally posted by Colon™
VJ is angry at me.

VJ is clearly that guy jumping on that chaps head, I say we report him before he gets you too.


Without CCTV how could an attack such as this have been documented? Identifying the criminals and the true nature of their crime (like who of that group was landing the blows) would be infinitely harder without it.

Even better is when you can use CCTV to track the thugs back to their homes.

I feel for that poor chap and you just only have to wonder at what sort of sicko continues to pound a complete stranger.

[Provost Harrison]

Originally posted by Dauphin
I thought it was generally accepted that CCTV does not prevent crimes to any great extent, but does help investigate and prosecute them.

That's why they should be fitted with lasers!

Imagine, if you will, a group of chavs fighting on your lawn...just wait for the CCTV with its deathray to kick in and vapourise the little bastards!