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Recently, while heading back to my car after a trip to the Apple Store, I heard an odd noise. Not only was it odd, it was following me. I’m not a fan of walking alone in large parking lots and I was carrying my MacBook so I was cautious and on the alert. I turned around and saw a few people walking to and from their cars and could not pinpoint the origin of the noise. As I got closer to my car the noise got louder and louder and then suddenly right behind me someone said “hello.” I turned, clutching my little laptop hoping to see a friend, and instead saw that it was a total stranger and he had simply answered his cell phone. The origin of the odd noise—a ringtone. He was oblivious to my presence. I hopped in the car (big sigh of relief) and fumbled with the ignition. My first thought was if I had been mugged at least it would be on the surveillance cameras and maybe I’d get my laptop back (as soon as I got out of the hospital).
I don't know why it took him so long to answer his phone but maybe he had decided to ignore it then changed his mind. People do that all the time and the rest of us get to hear a variety of interesting and sometimes bizarre ringtones. My phone is always set to vibrate with no ringer when I’m out and often it’s off entirely. I only use the ringer option when I’m home. For my family members I have fun ringtones depicting their personalities. At least, I think they’re fun but I’m not sure my family members think so. For friends I haven’t selected personalized ringtones. Instead, they all quack like a duck when they call me. It’s handy to personalize ringtones so that if I hear my mother’s I know that I must instantly answer it but depending on what I’m doing I may not answer other callers and I let them go into voicemail.
Before I left the parking lot I glanced around and saw video cameras here and there. When I was inside the mall there were many cameras not only in the common areas but also inside each shop. It is therefore easy for police personnel to obtain the videos and literally explore the entire entrance and exit (and all activity in between) of anyone visiting the mall. Along with that many people use the video option on their cell phones and record all sorts of things. Many of these videos help law enforcement but many also embarrass them. Double edged sword.
When I got home I pulled out my copy of “Nineteen Eighty-Four” (George Orwell, published in 1949) and did a little skimming to refresh my memory. First, he was an outstanding writer. Second, this novel should be read every few years to remind us how far our civil privacies have been lost to us. And they aren’t coming back. We’ve opened Pandora’s box. Lastly, we are now far beyond “Big Brother” watching over us. The entire world is watching over everyone. If we are sunbathing in our yards satellites can zoom down to our navels. If we are inside our homes vans with infrared technology can look right through our walls for body heat signatures resulting in perfect red outlines of our entire bodies. New scans at airports can show our entire bodies--bumps, flab, and genitalia. Mr. Orwell would not be surprised.
The argument that video technology is an important law enforcement tool is faulty because it hasn’t stopped crime. It does assist law enforcement in capturing criminals but not always. It’s not a perfect system and there are all sorts of defense mechanisms to help criminals remove that evidence from trials. Obtaining and studying video coverage is iffy when it finally gets to court. When I walk my dogs in foggy cold weather I often wear a hoodie. I look like a bank robber. People wearing hoodies all look alike regardless of race or gender. Slippery slope.
TV crime shows make surveillance a major part of their story lines. Sometimes with humor. When watching videos trying to determine the path of a fleeing bank robber they often find people scratching themselves in places best left to the imagination, taking part in romantic interludes in cars, eating giant burgers while carrying around a 300-pound waistline, and other embarrassing views into human behavior.
Recently there have been several reports about traffic enforcement cameras and that they have a few glitches that for some reason have not been corrected. Some cameras read the letter “O” when it should be the letter “D” and people are receiving nasty and expensive tickets for places they haven’t been. Though they fight these tickets it sometimes takes weeks and months and during that same period yet another ticket comes their way so that they are literally embroiled in fighting these errors every day. It is unclear why the corrective procedure is so laborious. I know I spend a good part of each year fighting customer service issues and many are technology related.
Yet, I’m conflicted about the use of surveillance. Had I been mugged the other day I would have welcomed a video record. But what about 10 years from now? An example is the smoking restrictions that are creeping into private apartment homes. If one signs a lease as a non-smoker it is potentially possible for some sort of surveillance to determine if they are smoking secretly. Is that a proper use? Private investigators already use a variety of surveillance methods to trap errant spouses—and then put them on TV shows! Is that a proper use? When the methods slip from law enforcement to private indelicacies it’s crossing a dangerous line.
If Anne Frank and her family’s neighborhood had been surveilled by infrared scanning they would have been murdered long before they finally were. They were fugitives from the Nazis but the Nazis were the official government. When our official governments come after us with surveillance of the magnitude we have now and even greater technology in the future, what power will they wield over us? If I eat a brownie before bed will my doctor see me and scold me because of my diabetes? Outrageous? Read Orwell.
Video cameras, surveillance cameras, cell phone cameras, satellite cameras, retail cameras, and government cameras are everywhere. Check out YouTube. You might be there. Peek-A-Boo!
www.sharonstrawhandgarner.com
Each week in this spot I will report an instance of good customer service (if any) but without embellishment. Just a business that knows how to treat customers.
This week I received excellent customer service from:
The Apple Store, Santa Rosa Plaza, Tech Phil
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