The Guardian has a good summary of a limited investigation conducted by the Chief Constable of Thames Valley Police, Sara Thornton QPM, into the public relations disaster which was the West Midlands Police Project Champion. This was a Labour government approved and funded plan to literally create CCTV Camera and Automatic Number Plate Recognition enforced…
Category: Non-U.S.
AU: Cops abandon secret information sharing deals
Matt Johnston reports: Ten secret deals between Victoria Police and bodies such as the AFL and Grand Prix Corporation have been dumped or cancelled. Since January 2008, police have signed 36 memoranda of understanding with external bodies, many of which allow sensitive information to be shared. A review of all agreements is under way after…
JP: ‘Secure’ webcams not always safe / Improper Internet setup leaves images open to unauthorized viewers
Bolstered by advertisements with phrases such as “a sense of reassurance and safety,” an increasing number of password-protected Web cameras have been installed at places such as nursery schools and children’s playrooms in condominiums to let parents remotely monitor their children via personal computer or cell phone. Yet due to such factors as misconfiguring the…
NZ: Teachers get power to search their pupils
Speaking of grooming students for a surveillance state in the name of “safety,” Joanne Carroll and Rachel Grunwell report that New Zealand will let teachers search students: Teachers are to get explicit powers to search children – potentially even strip-search them – for weapons. The Government is to release draft guidelines applying to the classroom, schoolyard…