The Growth of CCTV Technology

CCTV (Closed Circuit Television) is a widely used visual surveillance technology designed to monitor movement in a variety of designated environments. Casinos and banks initially used the technology to scrutinize the behavior of their customers. Then police departments started using CCTV as part of their crime prevention strategy. CCTV is currently used in many private homes as an effective home security devise.

The use of CCTV as has spread to department stores, convenience stores, and public and private buildings. The installation of CCTV in prisons has allowed guards to more effectively watch over a greater number of prisoners without an increase in manpower. Police departments and other agencies monitor traffic and speeders by placing CCTV along roads and highways. In some instances, this has served to ease traffic congestion. Some European countries, most notably England, have used CCTV surveillance in their efforts to catch terrorists.

No country has installed more CCTV in public areas than Great Britain. The first CCTV systems were installed as security devices for banks in the 1970s. By the 1980s, some municipalities were using CCTV in more extensive security test programs. In the 90s, CCTV systems were being installed in town centers, stations and other public areas all over the country. No one knows the exact number, but there are some 500,000 CCTV in London’s private buildings alone and close to 5 million surveillance cameras throughout Great Britain.

Despite the proliferation of CCTV throughout Great Britain, a 2008 report found that CCTV helped solve only 3 percent of the nation’s crimes. The lack of police training on how to use the images and how to present them in court has resulted in a less than stellar success story. Another problem is that police officers simply aren’t willing to sit through hours of boring images.

The primary use of CCTV has been in the area of crime prevention. However, the technology has been utilized for other purposes, all well. Sports and concerts events have made viewing easier by displaying the event simultaneously live on large screens. Companies using substances that are potentially toxic to humans can observe an experiment from a different area on CCTV. In an interesting case, a zoo, trying to film the birth of a baby gorilla, used an infrared illuminator with an infrared sensitive camera. This method recorded the first gorilla birth in captivity.

The use of CCTV has come in conflict with proponents of the right to privacy. Some contend that the new technology is in violation of the Fourth Amendment’s ban against unreasonable searches and seizures. Many people believe that placing CCTV in housing projects constitutes a means of “social control.” Whether CCTV deters crime or merely relocates the criminals is a current hot topic among policy makers.

Proponents of CCTV claim that the cameras are surveilling public areas and are therefore not an intrusion of privacy. The events of 9/11 made people security conscious. The rapid identification and arrest of the terrorists responsible for the 2005 London subway bombings turned much of the public in favor of surveillance cameras.

Article: http://www.askleona.com/2009/09/28/the-growth-of-cctv-technology/