http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-09-09/nsw-police-photographing-numberplates-and-storing-data/4944632
> NSW Police photographing numberplates and storing data for five years, Four > Corners reports > > New South Wales Police cars are photographing the numberplates of every > vehicle they pass on the state's roads and storing the data in a vast > searchable database with more than 200 million entries. > > Digital cameras attached to 280 vehicles are automatically taking snapshots > of all the cars they pass, irrespective of whether they are suspected of any > offence. > > Each photograph is location time-stamped before being stored, creating a vast > repository of data which is used as a tool for investigators. > > Tonight's Four Corners reveals the practice in its program, In Google We > Trust, which examines "big data" and privacy issues by following the data > trail of an average Australian family. > > The program examines how government agencies and private industry are > gleaning data from our everyday activities. > > NSW Police launched the technology, known as Automatic Numberplate > Recognition (ANPR), in 2009. > > Each car is equipped with three cameras that can take six photos a second and > more than 1000 in an hour. > > Using Infrared technology, the cameras are able to operate day or night. > > The technology is a powerful crime-fighting tool for police, who can scan > hundreds of numberplates automatically while freeing them up to look out for > other offences. > > "It automatically alerts officers to unregistered, uninsured and stolen > vehicles, particularly given that as at 1 January this year, registration > stickers are no longer required for light vehicles," a NSW Police spokesman > told Four Corners in a written statement. > > "Once alerted, officers can take the appropriate action against the driver > and/or owner of the vehicle and/or confiscating the vehicle." > > NSW Privacy Commissioner will seek more information from police > > The statement says no personal information is stored and that there are > strict protocols and procedures in place for accessing and retrieving > information. > > Police can routinely match numberplate registration numbers with a vehicle's > owner. > > "The information collected by the automatic numberplate recognition units – > car photo, registration plate number, police vehicle serial number that > captured the read, and where and when the photo was taken – is stored in a > separate database for about five years." > > NSW Privacy Commissioner Elizabeth Coombs told Four Corners that while the > practice is legal, she will be seeking more information from the police. > > "I think it's unlikely that the majority in the community are aware of the > potential of that collection and I think many would actually be quite taken > by surprise that that is occurring," she said. > "To my mind this issue raises things which are fundamental in the legislation > and that's about transparency and accountability and the matter that you're > raising is one that I most certainly would be speaking further to police > about." -- Kim Holburn IT Network & Security Consultant T: +61 2 61402408 M: +61 404072753 mailto:[email protected] aim://kimholburn skype://kholburn - PGP Public Key on request _______________________________________________ Link mailing list [email protected] http://mailman.anu.edu.au/mailman/listinfo/link
