5 Important Benefits Provided by Public Surveillance
These days we are all living under constant threats of attacks ranging from suicidal bombers to solo gunmen. To make our lives safer, many of us choose to have home security cameras installed on the insides and outsides of our homes.
There are also other issues that need to be considered such as public surveillance. Should security cameras be installed in public areas? Or are they an invasion of our privacy?
In the debate over whether or not surveillance cameras should be installed in public areas such as clubs, bars, airports, libraries, stores, and school, some people feel safer with these cameras, while privacy advocates and other citizens are nervous over the fact that whenever they are in public they are under surveillance.
Let's look more closely at the pros of having CCTVs installed in public areas.
1. Public Safety is Improved by Public Video Surveillance
When home security cameras are installed, it increases the safety of our homes. The major benefit of having surveillance cameras installed in public areas is that public safety is increased. Public surveillance increases your safety while you are out traveling, shopping, and clubbing.
Public security cameras may be used as a method for watching out for crimes.
In some cases, crimes may be deterred before they have a chance to start. If a suspicious person, people, or item is detected in an area, you can contact the appropriate authorities to respond before a crime is committed or any damage has been done. As a precaution, people can also be cleared from the area.
When public safety is secured, the fears people have about crime can be reduced as well, and their feelings of security increased.
2. The Crime Rate Is Reduced by Public Surveillance Camera
When a person knows that a certain area has surveillance cameras, they are going to be less likely to commit a crime in that location because they don't want to get caught.
For the team at Smart And Fast Electrical, they’ve seen a major upturn in people needing surveillance cameras. “When it comes to stopping crime, the only way to truly catch people is with cold, hard evidence. Capturing them on surveillance cameras is the perfect way, and because of that, crime rates are dropping because they’re getting scared of finally being caught.”
Public cameras are placed by some authorities in food stores or major shopping outlets in hopes that the security cameras will help to prevent people from committing crimes in the area.
3. Public Video Surveillance Helps To Catch Criminals
There is a much higher chance of catching a criminal after they have committed a crime if public surveillance cameras are installed in the area.
Over the years, facial recognition software has significantly improved. So if security cameras capture criminals in public areas, local authorities will be able to recognise as well as catch them a lot easier thanks to facial recognition technology. Images can be broadcast on network television and posters may be created to help spread information on the criminal.
One of the major benefits of having surveillance cameras installed in public areas is making it easier to catch criminals. One good example is the Boston Marathon bombing. The FBI took only three days before they released blurry shots that a surveillance camera installed inside a department store took of the two suspects.
4. Video Cameras Installed in Public Areas Gather Clues and Provide Evidence
Another benefit that surveillance provides is that footage recording a crime being committed may be used in court as evidence against an accused individual.
In certain situations, if there are not any CCTV security camera systems installed in public areas, there will be no or little evidence for convicting an individual of a crime and that person might end up going free. However, when night security cameras are installed, robbers may be recognised even when a crime is committed in a dark area.
Richard Gabriel, a roofing expert, says that the positioning of these cameras is vital. “Capturing criminals isn’t as easy as it might seem. It’s tactical. You need to set them up in the correct places, and also ensure they’re in a good vantage point so that it’s also harder for a criminal to spot the camera and break it.”
In some situations, public video surveillance footage may also help to prove a person's innocence when they were accused of a crime that they didn't commit.
5. Convenience is Brought to Everyday Life by Public Video Surveillance
Some cities have installed cameras on traffic lights to help prevent individuals from running red lights or from speeding.
Relevant authorities can also use live surveillance cameras to monitor road conditions. That allows them to create real-time traffic reports to help people select the right road and time when venturing out.
Finding a missing person, whether it’s scouring for a criminal on the run or a missing loved one, is a turbulent time for those involved. But for QLD Covert Investigations, no person is too difficult to find.
If you need information on someone, get in touch with QLD Covert Investigations and we will understand your problem and find a pathway to achieve what you need. 1300 553 788 or gm@qldcovertpi.com.au
