Police used a remote-controlled spy drone to watch crowds at the V festival at the weekend, the first time the technology has been used at a major public event.
The 70cm-wide flying surveillance device, fitted with high-resolution still and colour video cameras as well as infrared night vision capability, was used to keep tabs on people thought to be acting suspiciously in car parks and to gather intelligence on individuals in the crowd.
MW Power, the company that distributes the technology in the UK, plans to improve the drone’s capability by adding a so-called “smart water” spray – a liquid infused with unique artificial DNA sequences which can be squirted on to a suspect from above. It infuses their clothes and skin and the DNA code can be used later to identify them.
Noel Sharkey, an expert in robotics at Sheffield University is worried about the increasing use of robotic vehicles in military conflicts and policing.
“How long will it be before someone gets Tasered from the air for dropping litter, or even for relieving themselves down an alleyway under cover of night?”
Every technology useful to appropriate policing can be abused and used to suppress free thought and communication. The question is asked – should be asked every time the contradiction arises – who is in charge? Who provides the oversight?
Who, ultimately, gets to decide what is done with the information acquired?
* Inexpensive – far less than a fully manned helicopter
* Theft control
* Crowd observation – in case of typical hooligan fights
* Silent
* Same as CCTV cameras, only mobile
Seems like an efficient and cost effective addition to the local police force.
FTA – gets Tasered from the air for dropping litter
Just throwing that damn bubble gum on the ground would be sufficient cause.
Since AI isn’t quite “there” yet, they could be controlled by “special” morally sound operatives – retired baby boomers.
As long as the “rules” are public knowledge, implemented by elected officials, if you don’t agree to these rules, move out.
We’re talking cities with major problems, or major outdoor events.
If you want to live in a hive, respect the hive rules, established by the majority.
Personally I would feel safer knowing these things in the air en masse before visiting as a tourist New York, London or Paris.
Who is in charge? The President! (I don’t care if it is another country – Bush is the best!) And when the President decides Alberto Gonzales should decide, then Alberto Gonzales should decide. All hail King George!
#2 Safer how exactly? Did CCTV stop September 11th? Did CCTV stop the London Tube bombings? Nope? It gave us nice TV pictures and told us who blew themselves up… but safer??? naaaaaaaaaaahhh
As for drones… how long before we have a terminator 3 scenario with autonomous drones shooting people from the sky? hmmm not too long me thinks… come on John Connor…. where are you?
Next firmware version comes with face recognition and shoot-to-kill software together with direct upload of videos to YouTube under ‘The Scariest Police Video’ category.
Let’s see, these are people at a public event held in a outdoor public area. Why should there be ANY expectation of privacy?
only EUR 25K to get yourself one, John!
[edit: pls use tinyurl] http://tinyurl.com/27w4er
Surveillance only helps after an terrorist/criminal action has taken place, and only to identify the perpetrator and only if the perpetrator has not taken care to conceal his identity, and is of only marginal use when the perpetrator had no intention of surviving his actions.
What frightens people like myself is not so much the thought of being erroneously identified as the perpetrator of a crime or worse a terrorist action, but the thought that politically motivated individuals could use the surveillance to identify targets for harassment from the crowds of say, a political rally.
And frankly, there is plenty of evidence in the public realm that the the current administration has done and wishes to continue to do that very same thing.
Because all consumer digital cameras are being equipped with “face detection” – to help ensure the camera focuses on the faces of people in the picture… I can only imagine what capabilities these cameras have.
Are the drones tethered, or will it be a new sport to develop jammers for the radio-control systems? Will water-balloon sling-shots be used to knock the flyers down?
http://www.slingking.com/
The guilty until proven innocent award goes to:
“Smart Water” – It infuses their clothes and skin and the DNA code can be used later to identify them.
As we can all imagine just how accurate a flying super-soaker will be, spraying into a crowd…
I’m sure no one, other than the suspect(s), would have this stuff infuse their skin.
How good will the “mist/splash/splatter” or “gust of wind” defenses be against a positive skin-test for the designer DNA?
On a positive note: “How long will it be before someone gets Tasered from the air … relieving themselves down an alleyway under cover of night?”
Can’t happen soon enough.
Wouldn’t most Texans have tasered Ozzy when he was pissing on the Alamo in ’82?
All the more reason to support the right to keep and bear arms. I think a .30-’06 would be rather effective against such a nuisance, but of course a nice strong rubber band and a rock would probably work too.
Prediction:
In the (near) future, everyone will be Eleanor Rigby, “wearing a face that they keep in a jar by the door.” And everyone will “wear a mac” and a hat, regardless of rain, so it can be shed after a spray assault by one of these infernal things.
See the film “Idiocracy” for a taste of YOUR future! 🙂
If ever the Brits didn’t understand the concept of a ‘slippery slope’, I’ll bet they’re beginning to understand it now.
As long as it’s used for legitimate policing, I don’t have a problem with it. They’ve had plenty of manned helicopters with stabilized video cameras for years. This one is just unmanned.
If you stop to think about it, just about anything can be used in a bad way by the wrong people. You can’t stop technology…just keep it out of the wrong hands. (Good luck.)
I just had a vision of the future where we’re all perfectly safe because at birth, we’re all assigned our very own miniature spy drone to follow us around everywhere we go and record everything we do, keeping a permanent record of all of our lives.
As the author Joseph Wambaugh said, the more freedom you have, the more dangerous life is. The less freedom you have, the safer you are. To be perfectly safe, all we have to do is to live under a dictatorship.
“a liquid infused with unique artificial DNA sequences which can be squirted on to a suspect from above.”
Who says you don’t learn anything from watching porn?
Angel you horny bastard!
That was really funny!
I don’t really have a problem with surveillance of public places. I do however have a problem with the camera feed being restricted from public viewing. If the man wants to watch I should be able to watch too. If he doesn’t want me to see what hes looking at maybe he shouldn’t be either.
Let’s examine the effectiveness of CCTV in enlightening us on what occurred at the Pentagon on 911. Hundreds of cameras present and I get to see but 3 shitty frames of blurry nothing. Maybe if the tapes of said CCTV cams were all feeding live to streams on the web such mysteries could be solved.
Our police need to be policed by the public. Enough top secret bullshit.
“As long as it’s used for legitimate policing” by whose criteria?
We need one of these for every citizen. With enough technology, no one will be above the law.