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Keeping Big Brother
in check Philadelphia Centre Daily | June 13 2006 John Podesta is the president and CEO of the Center for American Progress in Washington and former chief of staff to President Bill Clinton William S. Sessions is the former director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation As technological advances turn the unimaginable into the everyday, ensuring the continued protection of civil liberties, privacy and security becomes ever more complicated. A growing number of communities have installed - or are considering - public video surveillance systems. These efforts gained momentum after 9/11, both as anticrime and antiterrorism measures. Philadelphia is no exception. In a May 16 referendum, residents overwhelmingly approved the installation of a video surveillance system. Many public surveillance systems employ the latest in high-technology features, creating powerful and intelligent networks of cameras. Residents generally welcome the perceived increase in their security, and often seem largely untroubled by any potential intrusion on their privacy rights or civil liberties. Most of us seem to accept the notion that individuals have no legitimate "expectation of privacy" once they leave their homes and step into the public streets. But even in public places, isn't there a point where we would draw the line? What if local governments used these systems to create "digital dossiers" on residents, tracking the time, date, and location of each individual's movements? What if an individual were filmed each time he or she entered a psychiatrist's office or an infertility clinic? Or an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting? Or the meeting of a controversial religious or political group? Even if we were not breaking any laws, wouldn't we be concerned if our every movement were recorded and stored in a digital database, readily searchable by the government? What if that information could be shared with anyone who asked for it? We believe it is possible to establish useful surveillance systems that also protect residents' privacy rights and civil liberties - but communities should incorporate such protections into their systems from the outset, and remain vigilant to ensure they are both effective and operating within legal limits. As members of the Constitution Project's bipartisan Liberty and Security Initiative, we have joined together with experts across the political spectrum to issue "Guidelines for Public Video Surveillance" (www.constitutionproject.org). We offer specific recommendations about increasing security while minimizing intrusions on individual rights. Important precautions include using an open and publicly accountable process to adopt a video surveillance system; establishing detailed rules to govern the use and retention of collected data; and creating a set of legal remedies in the event the system is misused or abused. We also recommend that before a permanent system is installed, the government conduct an open review process - with public input - outlining the precise geographic scope and capabilities of the system, and evaluating its potential impact on privacy rights and civil liberties. Once a system has been designed to minimize the potential negative impact, its use should be governed by additional rules. For example, "digital masking" or other technologies should be used to hide the identities of individuals captured on camera who are irrelevant to any criminal or antiterrorist investigation. Further, all personnel who operate the system or have access to the data it collects must be trained on the technical operation and applicable rules governing the system. There should also be regular audits to review how the system is being used. We all would like to restore a pre-9/11 sense of security to our communities. But in our attempts to do so, we must be as smart as the new technology we seek to install. Like any law-enforcement tool or tactic, video surveillance systems should have clearly defined uses, employ specific procedures, and be subject to oversight. They should be adopted thoughtfully, evaluated continuously, and constrained by appropriate checks and balances. We can be both safe and free. ---------------------------------------------------
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