Because crime is on the increase and a lot of it takes place in broad daylight on our streets, CCTV and surveillance systems are springing up everywhere. You will see them in constant operation in city centres, shopping precincts etc., where crowds of people gather for whatever the reason. They are there not only to deter acts of an unacceptable nature, but also to provide evidence in a court of law should a certain individual or individuals be caught performing some criminal activity.
CCTV is also used extensively at night to monitor the streets around certain bars and clubs to ensure there is no anti-social behaviour due to the excessive intake of alcohol and other illegal substances.
‘Talking CCTV’ is the latest development in trying to curb anti-social activities on our streets. In 2007, twenty town centres across England were targeted for this intrusion by, what some call, ‘Big Brother’.
The thought processes that have gone into this ideology is that if somebody seems about to commit a crime or has just committed one – albeit a minor offence such as littering; having a voice emanating from a CCTV camera telling you ‘not to do that’ or ‘pick up that rubbish you’ve just dropped’ will:
• Have a positive effect on the perpetrator who will back-off and obey.
• Cause much embarrassment to the person involved.
• Inform the general public in the surrounding area as to what’s happening. This has its advantages and disadvantages in that any Police in the immediate vicinity may be alerted, but also someone with good intentions could interfere but with disastrous results.
CCTV is also used extensively at night to monitor the streets around certain bars and clubs to ensure there is no anti-social behaviour due to the excessive intake of alcohol and other illegal substances.
‘Talking CCTV’ is the latest development in trying to curb anti-social activities on our streets. In 2007, twenty town centres across England were targeted for this intrusion by, what some call, ‘Big Brother’.
The thought processes that have gone into this ideology is that if somebody seems about to commit a crime or has just committed one – albeit a minor offence such as littering; having a voice emanating from a CCTV camera telling you ‘not to do that’ or ‘pick up that rubbish you’ve just dropped’ will:
• Have a positive effect on the perpetrator who will back-off and obey.
• Cause much embarrassment to the person involved.
• Inform the general public in the surrounding area as to what’s happening. This has its advantages and disadvantages in that any Police in the immediate vicinity may be alerted, but also someone with good intentions could interfere but with disastrous results.