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Public CCTV camera footage 'should be made public'
Who's watching you? Call for council and police camera output to be made freely available
The public deserves to see live streaming output of public and street CCTV cameras in order to keep the technology as transparent as possible.
With privacy high on the agenda, a leading close circuit TV camera company says that British taxpayers who fund publicly-placed devices should be able to monitor their output through live web services, all paid for from the public purse and fines for anti-social behaviour.
This is an opinion backed up by a poll specially commissioned for the CCTV.co.uk company, which found that two-thirds of people wanted to be able to see CCTV camera output.
"There's now huge demand to see and access what we're paying for," says CCTV.co.uk spokesman Jonathan Ratcliffe, "and the public feels they have the right to watch the same images that the police and local authorities access."
According to the poll, 1,345 members of the general public were asked about their views on access to council and police CCTV images.
Of those who supported live public access to camera footage, the major reasons given were:
"It's clear from these replies that there is are significant numbers of people willing to act as extra pairs of eyes for the law, and that's to be expected," says Ratcliffe. "We're certain more forward-thinking authorities will develop some sort of reporting scheme to engage these citizens rather than spurn their assistance.
"However, there's a significant numbers of people who just want to sit at home and people-watch. That's an equally valid motivation, too," he says.
Those who opposed public access to cameras gave a number of concerns for their lack of support:
"Privacy fears are an entirely valid concern," said Ratcliffe, "but this has to be weighed against the fact that these cameras are already being accessed by the authorities, for which the same arguments have already been addressed.
"Also, ghoulishness is one that police already know about, and is dealt with sensitively with traffic cameras that are already visible on the internet. The stream is pulled whenever there's a serious incident, meaning that the public is spared unpleasant details."
With some council webcams and traffic cameras already available to the public, it's a concept that many web users are getting used to, even if they only give a limited view and are only of passing interest, CCTV.co.uk says.
"If a way through the jungle of data and human rights laws can be found, this could be a leap forward in both public-police relations, and transparency in law enforcement," Ratcliffe says.
"We pay for these pictures, we deserve to see them."
Public CCTV camera footage 'should be made public'
Who's watching you? Call for council and police camera output to be made freely available
The public deserves to see live streaming output of public and street CCTV cameras in order to keep the technology as transparent as possible.
With privacy high on the agenda, a leading close circuit TV camera company says that British taxpayers who fund publicly-placed devices should be able to monitor their output through live web services, all paid for from the public purse and fines for anti-social behaviour.
This is an opinion backed up by a poll specially commissioned for the CCTV.co.uk company, which found that two-thirds of people wanted to be able to see CCTV camera output.
"There's now huge demand to see and access what we're paying for," says CCTV.co.uk spokesman Jonathan Ratcliffe, "and the public feels they have the right to watch the same images that the police and local authorities access."
According to the poll, 1,345 members of the general public were asked about their views on access to council and police CCTV images.
- 64% said they would like some sort of access
- 23% said that they wouldn't support public access to CCTV pictures
- 13% weren't sure
Of those who supported live public access to camera footage, the major reasons given were:
- Help the police to spot crime and anti-social behaviour
- To watch local areas on cameras like a webcam
- To hold police to account
- To see how busy town is before heading out
- Look for friends
"It's clear from these replies that there is are significant numbers of people willing to act as extra pairs of eyes for the law, and that's to be expected," says Ratcliffe. "We're certain more forward-thinking authorities will develop some sort of reporting scheme to engage these citizens rather than spurn their assistance.
"However, there's a significant numbers of people who just want to sit at home and people-watch. That's an equally valid motivation, too," he says.
Those who opposed public access to cameras gave a number of concerns for their lack of support:
- Privacy fears
- Would attract ghouls
- Would lead to strain on police resources
"Privacy fears are an entirely valid concern," said Ratcliffe, "but this has to be weighed against the fact that these cameras are already being accessed by the authorities, for which the same arguments have already been addressed.
"Also, ghoulishness is one that police already know about, and is dealt with sensitively with traffic cameras that are already visible on the internet. The stream is pulled whenever there's a serious incident, meaning that the public is spared unpleasant details."
With some council webcams and traffic cameras already available to the public, it's a concept that many web users are getting used to, even if they only give a limited view and are only of passing interest, CCTV.co.uk says.
"If a way through the jungle of data and human rights laws can be found, this could be a leap forward in both public-police relations, and transparency in law enforcement," Ratcliffe says.
"We pay for these pictures, we deserve to see them."
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