All UK car journeys to be monitored

[Steve]

Surveillance is being taken to the next level next year, as the UK's network of traffic monitoring cameras undergo upgrades which will allow ever car journey to be tracked and recorded, the number plate of each vehicle read and stored.

The move is an easy one for the police to pull off, given that the work involves, for the most part, the upgrade of existing CCTV cameras. They'll all be tied into to a computer that will store some 35 million number plate recognitions per day, keeping track of where everybody's going. Of course, the Police are heralding the system as a breakthrough in crime fighting; we're the first country to implement such a scheme.

http://www.hexus.net/content/item.php?item=4198

[Swafe]

*Throws poo at the government*

[Ceefer]

Its important to not get too carried away by the implications of this. The police will not be able to "...keep track of where everybody is going..." - they'll be able to keep track of most the vehicles that are observed with the current CCTV network, for the most part in cities, major towns and on major highways. I could drive from my village, plant a bomb on the Glasgow to London railway line, drive home and the police would be none the wiser. I hasten to add I have NO intention of doing such a thing!!! If you're reading this Big Bro.

I think the improvements to the CCTV system will be a good thing. They're only a problem for those who've got something to hide.

[Mike Fishcake]

They're only a problem for those who've got something to hide.

I don't like that argument.

I want you to be 100% honest with me and say that you've never done a single illegal thing in your life. Underage drinking/smoking, speeding in a car, copying CDs/DVDs/Software for friends or family, taping stuff off the TV for someone else, etcetera.

My point is, how peed off would you be if every time you did something bad in the eyes of the law, you were immediately punished for it because there was a device watching you?

What about employers monitoring what their employees are typing? The pages they're visiting, the MSN chat sessions they're logging, the phone calls they're making. But the employers are allowed to do that, because it will only be a problem for those that have something to hide. Won't it?

I'm not trying to claim there's a conspiracy or anything like that, but the thought that I'm being analysed creeps me out a bit. A machine will just see "speed > 30mph = fine" and keep a record of it, whereas a policeman might pull you over, see that you're obviously not a speed-crazed freak, give you a warning then let you drive away.

[Ceefer]

I will be 100% honest and say that I have done lots of illegal things in my life, including all the things you mention plus a few more besides and yes, I would be very 'peed off' if every time I did something bad in the eyes of the law I was immediately punished for it because there was a device watching me. But that's not what we're talking about here. We're talking about upgrading the Police's CCTV system so that car number plates can be tracked.

I would hazard a guess that where I live the bulk of my driving is not monitored by CCTV but when I'm driving in town I'm happy that there are CCTV cameras on every street corner and similarly at strategic locations on major highways. I don't break the speed limit in town or on the motorway, I don't jump red lights and in general I drive as carefully as I can so that I don't kill myself or other people. If the upgraded CCTV system will allow the Police to take action against the people who do drive dangerously then that's all well and good as far as I'm concerned.

I think the title of this thread 'All UK car journeys to be monitored' is very misleading because the Police will not be able to monitor every car journey. We are a long, long way from that capability.

[RoGuE|SaBeR]

I think Ceefer is making some very good points.

By simply being able to read number plates the police aren't going to be able to tell what the purposes of our journey will be. Just for the record I am against a "Big Brother" state but at the same time this technology has massive benefits for the community as a whole in that people who do drive dangerously can be stopped more effectively.

This step in itself I'm happy to happen but much more than this and I would start to question.

[Mike Fishcake]

Ceefer - TBH you do have some good points, I just really, really REALLY hate the "If you haven't done anything wrong, you've got nothing to worry about" argument in general.

However, where we do need to start getting concerned is when these cameras replace actual humans, because cameras can't monitor suspicious behaviour, ie, drunk people driving too slowly/veering all over the road etc. IMHO, drunk people are far more dangerous than people that go a few MPH over the speed limit.

[=TcQi=]

Is there any mention as to how fake number plates will be combated ?


=TcQi=

[just_laze]

I am with those who disagree that such a system should be implemented. To be honest with you, I don't think it's necessary. Of the thousands of Journeys made each year, what percentage do you think result in a crime being committed? I'd imagine an absolutely minute amount and I’m sure that the financial cost to the tax payer far outweighs the crime that will be combated as a result. Perhaps as the system is adapted to address such concerns as speeding and drunk driving the rate of increase/decrease for such crimes will be a more positive one but with the originally idea of using it simply to track journeys, i'm assuming it'll cost an awful lot of tax payers money to perform the necessary upgrades.

Saying that, isn't it nice to see a road initiative implemented without the real reason being to gain revenue, of course, as the system matures this will slowly become the case.

[chojin]

It has its good points and bad points. I would like to see more effot put into catching people with no Car TAX and or Insurance.


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[JF DVdoctor]

This is another classic case of tracking the innocent, and trying to convince us that we really are providing better protection.

Do they really think that the people intent on criminal activity are going to drive vehicles that can be identified? Just part of the gradual erosion of all privacy.

I wonder how many people realize that EVERY international phone conversation out of the UK is tracked, scanned for key words, and logged. that outside of Earls court Tube station there is what looks like a Police box that infact is a sophisticated tv scanner, recording faces and matching them up to a central data base, that Oxford street CCTV system also records faces and matches them up to a central data base.

So how do you defend you self when someone decided to "make their motor car look just like yours" down to the phony number plate.
Or the person that decided to use theatrical makeup to disguise them as an other innocent person.



John

[Swafe]

This is another classic case of tracking the innocent, and trying to convince us that we really are providing better protection.

Do they really think that the people intent on criminal activity are going to drive vehicles that can be identified? Just part of the gradual erosion of all privacy.

I wonder how many people realize that EVERY international phone conversation out of the UK is tracked, scanned for key words, and logged. that outside of Earls court Tube station there is what looks like a Police box that infact is a sophisticated tv scanner, recording faces and matching them up to a central data base, that Oxford street CCTV system also records faces and matches them up to a central data base.

So how do you defend you self when someone decided to "make their motor car look just like yours" down to the phony number plate.
Or the person that decided to use theatrical makeup to disguise them as an other innocent person.



John

Damn straight - its like DRM all over again taking it out on the honest people at a loss of their privacy, where criminals are out of the system and still able to do their normal business.