15th Conference on Computers, Freedom and Privacy: Panopticon
| Published date | 01 September 2005 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/07419050510633862 |
| Date | 01 September 2005 |
| Pages | 4-8 |
| Author | Barbara Glover,Eric Owen,Paula Storm |
| Subject Matter | Library & information science |
15th Conference on Computers, Freedom and
Privacy: Panopticon
Barbara Glover, Eric Owen and Paula Storm
4LIBRARY HITECH NEWS Number 8 2005, pp. 4-8, #Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 0741-9058, DOI 10.1108/07419050510633862
The 15th Annual Conference on
Computers, Freedom, and Privacy was
held in Seattle, April 12-15, 2005. Its
ominous-sounding subtitle, Panopticon,
refers to the prison designed by Jeremy
Bentham in the eighteenth century to
facilitate the constant observation of
prisoners without their awareness of
when they were being observed.
Although the design was never
constructed, the term has come to be
applied to societies practicing
widespread surveillance. The homepage
of the conference (www.cfp2005.org),
provides the following information on
how Panopticon came to be the theme:
``Over time, and particularly recently,
surveillance of ordinary citizens has
increased to dramatic levels. Not only
are governments watching more aspects
of their citizens' lives, but those in the
private sector are increasing
surveillance of people as well. Often
lost in the race to `increase intelligence'
are discussions about different
approaches to address problems like the
threat of terrorism that are equally or
more effective, but do not involve
extensive and constant surveillance.''
Audio recordings of the 14 plenary
sessions are available on the conference
web site. This article covers nine
plenaries. The others are entitled Data
Mining and Public Records;
Cyberliberties and the World of
Tomorrow ± Science Fiction Authors
on the Future of Computers, Freedom,
and Privacy; Mark Hosler of
Negativland: Adventures in Illegal Art:
Creative Media Resistance and
Negativland; Strategies for Infusing
Code with Values; and Government
CPOs: Are they worth fighting for? The
sixteenth Conference on Computers,
Freedom, and Privacy will be held in
Washington, DC, May 2-6, 2006.
Intelligent video surveillance
Two plenary sessions address the
topic of video surveillance. This one
focuses on the rapidly increasing use of
``intelligent video surveillance''
systems that integrate closed circuit
television (CCTV) cameras with
software algorithms intended to detect
suspicious behavior. Although these
systems are more efficient than those
monitored only by human eyes, they
pose serious privacy threats when
interfaced with databases containing
personal information such as facial
images or license plate registries.
Cedric Laurant of the Electronic
Privacy Information Center points out
that there is currently no federal
legislation and almost no case law
applying to the topic of video
surveillance. He is extremely concerned
about the lack of public oversight, the
possibility for discriminatory factors to
be incorporated into software
algorithms, and the tendency for
systems to be used for purposes other
than the purpose for which they were
designed. Laurant calls for
governments to adopt enforceable
guidelines and for manufacturers to
build privacy enhancing technologies
into intelligent video surveillance
systems.
Sousveillance in the Panopticon
As surveillance systems proliferate,
a growing number of individuals are
trying to protect themselves by
recording their own personal activity
with digital video equipment, a process
called ``sousveillance.'' Dr Steve
Mann, perhaps the best-known
practitioner and proponent of self-
monitoring, is featured on the panel of
the plenary session entitled
Sousveillance in the Panopticon. Mann
predicts that, as continuous recording
and archiving become commonplace,
legal protections will first be developed
to cover specialized applications for the
disabled and will then be expanded to
cover artistic, personal safety, and other
uses. He expects that insurance
companies might offer lower rates to
individuals who wear cameras. Panelist
Brin, who agrees with Mann's
predictions, also expects to see an
increase in law enforcement
professionalism result from widespread
sousveillance. In 1998 David Brin
received the Freedom of Speech Prize
from the American Library Association
for his book, The Transparent Society:
Will Technology Force Us to Choose
Between Freedom and Privacy?
Panelist Latanya Sweeney is director of
Carnegie Mellon's Data Privacy Lab
which has compiled a repository of
links to thousands of online webcams
that ``observe the public in public
places.'' Assuming that most people
prefer not to have their private
conversations recorded, she
recommends widespread adoption of
technologies that would facilitate
detection of recording equipment and
permit individuals to opt out of being
recorded. Warning ``if we film
constantly just in case, then we're no
better than the government perpetrating
the privacy invasion in the first place,''
panelist Simon Davies, director of
Privacy International, fears we are
heading into a society like the one
George Orwell predicted in his novel,
1984.
Observing hidden surveillance
structures
This plenary session focuses on little
known databases that can have
profound influences on our lives. Lee
Tien, senior staff attorney of the
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