IEEE Technology and Society Magazine - Summer 2014 - 62

around them. It is our hope that
this may also be useful to researchers and policymakers seeking a
deeper understanding of the extent
and social implications of video
surveillance as it is increasingly
woven into the fabric of contemporary urban life.
Although the project's focus is
on Canadian privacy legislation,

are generally aware that they are
often under surveillance in public
spaces, but often unaware of the
policies or regulations that govern
that surveillance. They want to
know, however, what is happening
to their data in terms of retention
and access. The SurveillanceWatch
app takes these information needs
into account, and allows users

We are at a critical juncture
in the development and
deployment of video
surveillance technologies.
we have received submissions
from the u.K., the Netherlands,
Portugal, Morocco, India, Malaysia, Australia, and from across the
united States. While all pins in
the app are color-coded based on
the Canadian guidelines outlined
above, a substantial international
data set could reveal interesting
patterns in the transparency and
accountability of video surveillance operations internationally.

Awareness, Consent,
and Accountability
Our projects combine citizenperspective research, participatory
design, and public education in the
expanding arena of visual surveillance and consumer privacy. We
have two interlocking goals: to find
out what people understand about
the recent developments in video
surveillance associated with the
introduction of digital techniques,
what concerns they express, and
where information gaps exist; and
to develop tools to help them assert
their privacy rights and constructively engage with the surveillance
organizations, processes, and policies of video surveillance.
Our approach to measuring and
raising awareness is multi-pronged,
accomplished through our qualitative fieldwork, our app, and our
website. We have found that people
62

to document as many features of
the surveillance installations they
come across in their daily lives as
are relevant to them. We hope that
using the app generates awareness
both of the presence of surveillance
and a questioning attitude towards
the way it is used and the degree of
compliance with privacy regulation
that organizations demonstrate.
Our fieldwork participants were
clear in stating that in most cases
they would like to know if organizations collecting their personal
data through video surveillance
were compliant with privacy regulation. However, as we have noted,
so far no reported private sector
installation meets the minimum
compliance standard for informative signage [2]. In the hope that
increased citizen awareness can
help encourage organizations to
meet their privacy obligations, the
SurveillanceWatch app allows uses
to document the degree to which
installations they see are compliant
with privacy standards, and presents this information in an easily
accessible and interpretable form.
As signage is the primary means by
which organizations notify people
about surveillance, and notification
is necessary for consent, the app
allows detailed documenting of the
information on such signs. Since
informed consent is impossible if

people are not given the chance to
understand the nature of the surveillance before they enter the surveilled space, it is important that
organizations take their responsibility to provide compliant signage
seriously. The app crowd-sources
the assessment of compliance and
renders that compliance visible.
This research is conducted on
the assumption that the purposes of
surveillance and the potential uses
of visual surveillance data need
to be made more transparent, and
organizations using these technologies need to be more accountable to
members of the public in protecting
privacy rights. Accountability is
multi-faceted and inheres with both
organizations that collect data, and
citizens whose data is collected.
Organizations have a responsibility to develop clear policies and are
accountable for demonstrating that
they are compliant with the laws
and regulations governing their
surveillance activities. Citizens, in
turn, have both the right and the
responsibility to engage with surveillance policy at all levels, and
we hope through the development
and promotion of our SurveillanceWatch tool that we can help to make
the importance of this engagement
obvious and the process easy.
We are at a critical juncture in
the development and deployment
of video surveillance technologies. Their use and capabilities are
increasing, while policies, procedures, and uses for the information
that is visually captured for analysis are still evolving. This period
of change and flux, when policy
is malleable to disruptions and
interventions is the ideal time for
the development and deployment
of privacy-protective measures to
regulate the use of these technologies in the interests of civic safety
and well-being. This is unlikely to
happen, however, if Canadians are
unaware of what is at stake. By
finding out what they need to know
and attempting, through technological mediation, to supply that

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IEEE Technology and Society Magazine - Summer 2014