The use of biometric surveillance by the state is a matter of increasing sensitivity and significant public concern - not just here but globally. As almost all of the technological capability for biometric surveillance is privately owned, the only way we will be able to harness the legitimate uses of that technology in the future is in trusted partnership with trusted private sector partners.
Officially one year into my term as the Biometrics and Surveillance Camera Commissioner, I gave the keynote speech at the NPCC’s National CCTV Conference in Bristol recently. I took this opportunity to reflect on several trends emerging of the last …
The government has launched a consultation on proposed alterations to the Surveillance Camera Code of Practice. This is the first revision to the Code since its introduction in June 2013.
The Service Level Agreement (SLA) framework is a guidance document designed to help you and your organisation develop an SLA yourselves. An effective SLA is a crucial part of any partnership working arrangements between organisations. This template has been designed specifically for partnerships between relevant authorities defined at section 33(5) of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 (local authorities and police forces) regarding the operation of surveillance camera systems.
Hello! I’m Fraser Sampson, the new Surveillance Camera Commissioner (and Biometrics Commissioner too). I came into post on 1 March and with so much going on in both the world of surveillance and biometrics, I’m sure the next few weeks and months are going to be busy, but I think this is an exciting time and I’m looking forward to the road ahead.
Earlier this year I sent a survey to LAs in England and Wales to gain a better understanding as to the extent to which they were complying with their statutory responsibilities arising from Section 33(1) of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 (PoFA) and the Surveillance Camera Code of Practice, in connection with their use of overt surveillance camera systems in public places.
This blog discusses some work around standardising video data produced by surveillance camera systems and the ability of this video data to be easily retrieved and played by the police and the courts.
In this blog the Commissioner looks back over the National Surveillance Camera Strategy for England and Wales, what's been achieved and what the future might hold.
The local authority strand of the national surveillance camera strategy as been working on a framework service level agreement document to help local authorities and police forces write their own agreements. Read about how this work is developing and get involved.
Video Surveillance Systems are operated by most Local Authorities in England and Wales and are intrinsically linked with operational policing to protect the public and ensure their safety. So how effective are they and is the cost of installing and operating those systems really worth it?
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Surveillance Camera Commissioner's Office
This is the official blog for the Surveillance Camera Commissioner’s Office. We aim to give you updates on the current issues in the sector, share ideas and importantly invite your views on the use of surveillance cameras.
