Liberty calls for regulations on household CCTV
Story link: Liberty calls for regulations on household CCTV by Jan Harris
Human rights organisation, Liberty, is calling for CCTV legislation to be updated to take into account the growing number of cameras being installed by householders in the UK.
With increasing concern over levels of crime, and CCTV technology becoming more readily available and affordable, many householders are installing systems on their own property in an [...]
Council approves CCTV for Lerwick
Story link: Council approves CCTV for Lerwick by Jan Harris
Shetland Islands Council has approved the installation of 13 CCTV cameras in Lerwick town centre.
An application for one additional camera will be considered by planners in February.
Images from the Council’s new £200,000 CCTV system will be relayed to Lerwick police station for recording and monitoring.
The decision to approve the system is a [...]
UK citizens monitored more than rest of Europe
Story link: UK citizens monitored more than rest of Europe by Jan Harris
Privacy International’s 2007 ‘International Privacy Ranking’ places the UK as the worst surveillance society in the European Union, and one of the worst in the world.
The UK’s citizens are the most monitored in the whole of Europe, according to the report by the civil liberties group.
Privacy International used data on how 47 countries [...]
Moray Council deploys covert CCTV cameras
Story link: Moray Council deploys covert CCTV cameras by Jan Harris
As part of a £250,000 investment in CCTV, Moray Council has purchased hi-tech mobile radio cameras which can be hidden in fake rocks and plants.
The cameras will be deployed at troublespots in order to help prevent anti-social behaviour and fly-tippers, and to help catch offenders. Moray Council is the second local authority [...]
Mayoral candidate promises live streaming CCTV on buses
Story link: Mayoral candidate promises live streaming CCTV on buses by Jan Harris
As part of his campaign to be London mayor, Boris Johnson has promised that if he were elected, he would bring in a six-month trial of live screening of CCTV on buses in the capital.
The £150,000 pilot scheme is designed to help police improve security on London’s transport network. It would beam live footage from [...]
Funding bid for CCTV across NE Derbyshire
Story link: Funding bid for CCTV across NE Derbyshire by Jan Harris
NE Derbyshire Community Safety Partnership is seeking funding for the development of a £160,000 wireless CCTV system, linking 24 villages to a central CCTV hub.
The new system would connect existing cameras, and planned new cameras across the district, to the central monitoring station. It would also feature a radio system for businesses and the [...]
Rapid growth predicted in global CCTV market
Story link: Rapid growth predicted in global CCTV market by Lin Freestone
The worldwide CCTV market is expected to grow by 13% every year until 2011, according to research conducted by RNCOS. The growth is expected to cover both IP-based CCTV and conventional systems.
Security concerns over a rising threat of terrorism, together with increasing retail activity, has driven the demand for low-cost, reliable and innovative technology. However, [...]
Knowsley in funding bid for £32.7m CCTV scheme
Story link: Knowsley in funding bid for £32.7m CCTV scheme by Jan Harris
Knowsley Council has been invited to bid for Government funding to deploy hi-tech CCTV-equipped street lamps across the Knowsley area of Liverpool.
The £32.7m scheme would involve replacing around 14,000 lampposts with the new equipment. Most of the street lights in Knowsley, many of which have been in place for over 40 years, would be [...]
United Taxi Group secures funding for CCTV
Story link: United Taxi Group secures funding for CCTV by Jan Harris
United Taxi Group, which operates in Gravesham, has secured £59,000 from the EU’s Urban Thames Gateway Kent fund, to equip taxis with CCTV cameras.
The funding will be matched by a partnership of the drivers themselves, Gravesham Council, the police and the multi-agency Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership, giving a total of £118,000.
Taxi drivers in [...]
Government to fund CCTV at Jewish schools
Story link: Government to fund CCTV at Jewish schools by Jan Harris
The Department for Children, Schools and Families is to fund security measures at Jewish schools, including CCTV, swipe-card entry systems and security fencing.
The decision follows recommendations in the 2006 all-party parliamentary report on anti-Semitism, which said that the Home Office should provide more support to address the security needs of British Jews, especially with [...]
Home Office report criticises CCTV standards
Story link: Home Office report criticises CCTV standards by Jan Harris
According to the Home Office and Association of Chief Police Officers’ National CCTV Strategy report, which was published today, most footage from CCTV cameras is not of a good enough standard to help identify offenders.
The report identifies a large number of problems with CCTV systems in the UK, which has an estimated 4.2 million [...]
Tyne & Wear equips fire engines with CCTV
Story link: Tyne & Wear equips fire engines with CCTV by Jan Harris
Tyne & Wear Fire & Rescue Service is equipping all of its fire engines with CCTV cameras to protect both personnel and the appliances themselves, from antisocial behaviour.
The digital CCTV cameras can record through 360 degrees. Six cameras will be fitted to the brigade’s fleet of 31 appliances, at a cost of approximately £3,500 [...]
CCTV scheme approved for Lennoxtown
Story link: CCTV scheme approved for Lennoxtown by Jan Harris
CCTV is to be installed in Lennoxtown, Dunbartonshire, following a period of community consultation.
The project is being delivered by the Lennoxtown Initiative in partnership with East Dunbartonshire Council. It is also supported by Campsie Community Council.
The system will comprise six cameras on Main Street, and a further two at High Park in the [...]
Most people ignore talking CCTV
Story link: Most people ignore talking CCTV by Jan Harris
Salford Council has revealed that over half of the people admonished for their behaviour by a new ‘talking’ CCTV system, in Eccles, ignored the reprimand.
Between 1 June 2007 and 18 September 2007, CCTV camera operators made 40 announcements over speakers connected to the cameras, reprimanding members of the public for anti-social behaviour such as [...]
Lib Dems call for greater CCTV regulation
Story link: Lib Dems call for greater CCTV regulation by Jan Harris
At their party conference, the Liberal Democrats called for measures to eliminate the UK’s ’surveillance society’.
With the UK currently the most watched country on the planet, with a CCTV camera for every 16 people, the party is calling for the assurance that all CCTV will be subject to appropriate regulation.
Other measures called for [...]
Safe School Technologies launches security systems for schools
Story link: Safe School Technologies launches security systems for schools by Jan Harris
London-based company, Safe School Technologies, has launched a number of security systems specifically designed to protect the safety of pupils and school teachers.
The systems aim to fulfil the specific security needs of schools, which may not be fully addressed by systems from generic security companies.
The products include SentryVision, a security management CCTV solution, [...]
Lib Dems suggest CCTV ineffective on crime
Story link: Lib Dems suggest CCTV ineffective on crime by Jan Harris
According to an analysis of London’s £200 million CCTV network by the Liberal Democrats, there is no evidence that CCTV cameras help to solve crime.
There are 10,534 CCTV cameras in 32 London Boroughs, owned and controlled by local authorities and Transport for London.
The Liberal Democrats compared the number of cameras in each London [...]
North Staffordshire buses fitted with CCTV
Story link: North Staffordshire buses fitted with CCTV by Jan Harris
Transport company, First, is fitting 12 low floor, easy access buses in North Staffordshire with CCTV systems, in order to enhance passenger safety.
Six CCTV cameras will be fitted on each bus, providing full coverage of the passenger area and also an external record of road events.
First will use footage from the cameras to help [...]
Legal concerns raised over Google Maps’ Street View
Story link: Legal concerns raised over Google Maps’ Street View by Lin Freestone
Some concerns have been raised about Google Maps’ new high-resolution images in its Street View feature, which enables people to easily find, discover, and plan activities relevant to a location.
So far, Google has used the tool in maps of just nine US cities. It offers 360-degree views at the street level, including people informally [...]
Britain perceived as surveillance society according to survey
Story link: Britain perceived as surveillance society according to survey by Jan Harris
According to an online poll for Liberty, the civil rights group, almost 60 per cent of people believe that Britain has become a surveillance society.
The poll also found that only 17 per cent of Britons trusted the authorities to maintain the confidentiality of their personal data.
Liberty believes that anti-terrorism measures implemented since the [...]