Big Brother Britain...is the US far behind? (1 Viewer)

[BullDawg]

Big Brother Britain 2006: 'We are waking up to a surveillance society all around us'

By Jason Bennetto, Crime Correspondent

Published: 02 November 2006

Britain has sleepwalked into becoming a surveillance society that increasingly intrudes into our private lives and impacts on everyday activities, the head of the information watchdog warns.

New technology and "invisible" techniques are being used to gather a growing amount of information about UK citizens. The level of surveillance will grow even further in the next 10 years, which could result in a growing number of people being discriminated against and excluded from society, says a report by the Information Commissioner, Richard Thomas.

Future developments could include microchip implants to identify and track individuals; facial recognition cameras fitted into lampposts; and unmanned surveillance aircraft, predict the report's authors.

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[DadsDream]

The Pentacostals and Jehova's Witnesses have been saying this for years.

 

[Severum]

Also:

If you want a late-night drink in Yeovil in south-west England, prepare to be treated like a criminal. Pubs and clubs there are asking everyone for photographic identification and evidence of address. They are recording the information, including photos and dates of birth, sharing it with others involved in the scheme. They&#8217;re even fingerprinting their customers. It won&#8217;t be long before similar schemes are popping up all over the country.

http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php?/site/article/2021/

 

[Optimusaint]

 

[ra]

Having data is a very useful tool. Even if you're going to review .001% of it.
Of course, it depends on a few things:
How expensive is it to collect and keep?
How useful will it be once it's needed?
How important will it be once it is retrieved?

We collect amazing amounts of data here at my work. The vast majority of it is never looked at because nothing's going on. It's those rare occasions when something does go wrong that it suddenly becomes invaluable.

In England's case, maybe catching a murder on tape....etc.
How much are they willing to spend to help catch one criminal? Now multiply that times how many criminals you intend on catching... there's the amount you should spend and keep.

Of course, I'm completely ignoring the blatant violation of personal privacy.