CCTV must not record conversations, warns new guidance Closed-circuit television (CCTV) system operators would need exceptional justification for recording sound as well as video, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has warned. In a newly revised CCTV code of practice (pdf) the ICO said that sound recording is intrusive and unnecessary in most circumstances, and that the …
Watch what you say, because they watch what you say.
Not just with CCTV cameras with mic's but RIPA means they can pull all your email and communications without a court order, in secret, without proving cause.
So watch what you say, even if they don't attach the microphone to the lampposts.
the states right to even film/photograph me, let alone listen in on my conversations.
Let's have cameras in every room in every government building in Whitehall/Westminster, filming our public "servants" (now there's a laugh I should have said masters) every action. And pump those images to big screens dotted around UK cities via dedicated freeview channels.
It might be illegal to record conversations now, but our masters have a habit of changing the law to suit their needs. And the sheeple acquiesce, leaving those who do think for themselves as a hardly visible, ineffective minority.
Does the government ever consider that as our foreign policy encourages those who feel abused to don rucksacks and blow up train loads of people, the erosion of our freedoms and liberties at home could actually contribute the disaffection of our youth, and that the us and them attitude just serves to alienate further?
What baffles me is the only problem this bloke sees with recording speech from CCTV is "[it] could undermine any public support there is for CCTV". You folks in the UK really have a winner here. Is it because the country has been traumatised by the 2005 attacks that such a useless occupancy of space is tolerated ?
Also, how strong his requirements are, mad: "You should choose a system without this facility if possible. If your system comes equipped with a sound recording facility then you should turn this off or disable it in some other way."
Ok, so, on the CCTV mark I bought, wasn't possible, too bad. So is ok, thanks, ICO for being the ticked mark guy. I'm even sure if I buy the only model with sound recording, but lower the volume just a bit, you'll still be happy. Easy going, really.
On the other side of the spectrum, listening to special radio channels (military, etc ...) is forbidden, thus, in some countries, any radio station sold is without those frequencies available.
Always good to compare the 2 ...
PH icon, due to bollocks threshold crossed.
"In the limited circumstances where audio recording is justified"
These "limited circumstances" would obviously be "everywhere, all the time" because WE HAZ TO STOP TEH TERRIRESTS!!!!!!!!!!!! and if you oppose it on the outmoded grounds of freedom of speech and personal privacy, you're obviously a terrorist too. Won't somebody please think of the children!?!?
So, reading between the lines, if I was to install a couple of CCTV cameras around my property (we've had numerous break-ins, trespasses, criminal damage etc), anything recorded would not be allowed as evidence in court if I didn't display the warning notices and register the cameras ? I was under the impression that these requirements only applied to commercial systems, not domestic security cameras. I'm aware that they shouldn't point outside the property/boundary lines.
I'd be grateful if someone could confirm this either way.
Well like everything else that goes on in this country .. because we can.
[...] and to prevent its use becoming increasingly viewed as part of the surveillance society [...] unlike biometric ID, DNA database, RIPA, on-line medical history ..... it's all for your own good of course.
You did read the linked document didn't you? You didn't? Oh.
It specifically states that this applies to businesses. Private individuals are not covered. There is no need for individuals to install signs so long as the area covered is reasonable (i.e. you own property and nearby public areas, e.g. the road outside your house).
Right,
We could always attend a lip reading course to decypher the criminal's conversations in the (very likely) event of our valued property being robbed even though it is "guarded" by [the toothless means of] CCTV!
On a personal note, as I cannot record anyone's audio conversation, I may as well buy a black and white CCTV camera. I can then speed up the playback by 25% and have my very own "Keystone Cops" type movie production company! As I will probably not be allowed to use the video as evidence against the criminals, I may as well use the footage to ridicule them through YouTube!
Man I love the nanny state of PC gone berserko
What defines a conversation? One could argue that it doesn't have to have sound in it (thanks Paul K) and so any form of transaction between two people might be exempt.
Of course a nice quality camera would be sufficient to allow a good lip reader to work out what was going on without sound, so does this mean that they won't introduce high resolution cameras?
Never! They won't stop until they can identify people by the way their spuds swing in their slacks, or their boobs bounce in their bras.
I'll get my coat and leave quietly since I've worked a bit on gait recognition...
Hmmmm, so if the sound is hooked up to automatically do voice recognition and record the text versions of the conversations, then that wouldn't "technically" be breaking this guidance?
(Would also make searches across large amounts of conversations far easier.)
Hopefully this aspect gets addressed in law somewhere, to disallow circumvention like this.
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