Video: Software turns busy city into a ghost town
What if CCTV cameras were designed to protect privacy rather than erode it?
That鈥檚 the idea behind software that allows everything from individuals to dogs and moving vehicles to be and only made viewable when an authorised person watches the tape.
The system has been developed by , based in San Francisco, a company that provides analytical software for clients with wall-mounted security cameras. The firm鈥檚 technology enables retailers to monitor minute details of how customers navigate their stores. The software can even track how long people spend in a given aisle, and see what products they pick up and look at.
Advertisement
Now the company is adding a twist, says CEO Steve Russell. 鈥淵ou can enhance video quality to where you can see those details but use privacy features to remove people from those images.鈥�
The setup uses a machine learning algorithm to identify movement belonging to foreground elements, like a person walking across the camera鈥檚 field of view. The software recognises the stationary background and can then paint over foreground objects to neatly hide human activity.
Not caught on camera
The cameras themselves carry out all the analysis and processing so that no sensitive data has to necessarily be transmitted across the internet, where it may be vulnerable to interception.
The system as well. As more people install such devices, Russell thinks they may be more comfortable knowing that they won鈥檛 always be caught on camera.
鈥淚t could operate as a security camera when you鈥檙e out, but when you鈥檙e in you could be effectively erased from the footage,鈥� he says.
Lee Maguire at the digital advocacy organisation says that the technology may potentially be of interest for privacy-minded consumers whose don鈥檛 want their actions analysed without their knowledge. However, would have to ensure that sensitive information is not leaked.
鈥淎ny technology that can more effectively anonymise video footage would be welcomed,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut obviously that comes with a change in capacity for how cameras are used and ultimately you as a member of the public have no idea how people are storing your data.鈥�
