| A current overview on CCTV security In recent years, the market for Closed Circuit Television in the U.K.
has developed at a quite astonishing rate, so that we are now
unenviably regarded as the CCTV users capital of the world.
In fact a recent report has suggested that there are in excess of 4 million
surveillance cameras operating nationally; if you consider that the vast
majority of these units are situated in areas of high population density, it
does somewhat put the whole subject of surveillance into perspective.
As technology has continued to both improve in quality, and reduce in
overall cost, the scope for 'market growth' continues to drive an
industry which is still very much in its infancy.
And therein lies many of the problems associated with CCTV. At one end
of the spectrum, the supporters club is championed by politicians who
genuinly perceive the equipment, as a quick fix solution to flagging support.
"Tough on crime" is something that our elected representatives (both
nationally and locally) rely upon as a surefire way of canvassing support.
If CCTV cameras are installed, the voters feel safer in their communities,
and so our modern day champions of good over evil, will hopefully if all
goes according to plan, be returned to office at the next election.
At the other extreme, civil liberties groups are quick to convey the
message that cameras do not cut crime, but simply provide a means for
the state to keep watch over the daily activities of its citizens.
The truth of course lies somewhat uncomfortably in the middle.
CCTV like the mobile phone (cellphone) is a modern day fact of life. The
range of equipment available can provide high quality images of individuals,
using cameras 100's of metres away, or hidden covertly within reach.
The problems do not so much revolve around the quality of the equipment,
but more the knowledge gap for many of those both buying and installing it.
Be under no illusion, the CCTV industry does not exist to simply reduce the
levels of crime in our communities. It is a specialised sector of
manufactured products which have a vital role to play in modern society.
The defining of this role, and the way in which CCTV continues to be applied,
could at the present rate of development, take at least another twenty years
for "all the pieces to fit".
Based on visual assessment, the CCTVCREW estimate that perhaps 90%+
of existing security cameras are incorrectly specified, configured or installed.
As crime and the ever present threat of terrorism continues to develop,
the use of CCTV will in future need to be applied far more appropriately. | |
