In a brief article on Gizmodo by resident contributor Mario Aguilar, a brand new security system is detailed in brief. While this system is still in its infancy as a whole, much of the components that make up this system can be pieced together with more advanced technology in no time. Supposedly it’s only limitation is that “It can only scan faces within 30 degrees vertically or horizontally from the camera and the faces have to be at least 40 x 40 pixels in size.”
Remember the movie “The Minority Report” with Tom Cruise? There was a scene in particular that showed miniature cameras that were placed over digital billboards that scanned the faces of the passerbys and displayed relevant advertisements tailored to that person. Another instance was in the GAP of the future where a camera would scan the face of previous customers and remember their sizes and clothing preferences in the movie. The eerie thing about this system is that when it was displayed in the movie, audiences were enthralled but simultaneously frightened at the possibility of this technology; and now it is a reality.
Technology such as this surveillance system would mean that looking up an individual would take no more than a few seconds browsing through a database. These cameras can capture images in milliseconds and who knows where it will be stored and for how long. While I can understand that it would make catching criminals on the run much easier, I also see the potential for the governmental misuse of such technology and I think that if I want to stay off the government’s watch list, I should probably cease expressing my open fear of this new system 🙂