Big Brother Surveillance And Privacy Laws

My local buses have just been upgraded, they now have 3 new, big, shiny, protected, encased cameras on them now, as well as the "do not leave any bags unattended, if you see an unattended bag call 000 emergency" (in Australia). How can all these places and organisations keep filming us without our permission? Surely there should at least be a warning sign which says 'if you enter this bus you will be filmed' that's what I thought was mandatory!! Without this warning shouldn't we be able to see sue, and also, wouldn't this be a breach against the privacy laws?? Have the corrupt Australian dictators passed some other hidden new law which enables them to film us like this without our permission??

I don't know. I think it's appalling. It sure seems like it should be totally illegal. Here, in the US, I guess that under the Patriot Act, just about anything goes. I don't understand why the Supreme Court here didn't vote that unconstitutional in the first place. After all, that "Act" does just about suspend the 4th ammendment.

But, these things go on, even right under our noses, and there doesn't seem to be a thing we can do to stop it. And there will always be people who will say that if you have nothing to hide, then why worry about it. Well, I am a law abiding citizen, have been for years before 9/11 & all the subsequent extra surveillance, but I feel extremely invadeded, regardless. If I wanted to live in a fishbowl, perhaps I would have been more interested in persuing an acting career, or a political one. However, I happen to be a very private person.

That's just me, but you don't have to be breaking the law to want to go on an airline and not have your underwear examined, and have them look at your socks the the inside of your shoes, etc.....

Sorry, I'm rambling. Because I have no answer, but the whole surveillance thing and intrusion of privacy p*sses me off to no end.

We have camera's everywhere in the UK, I believe we have more than any other country in the world, statistically per head at least. Not sure on the exact figures.

My hippy, liberal, Catholic English teacher and I have talks about these things. She told me that you can be watched for about 2 miles out of London.

But if you don't have anything to hide, why worry? If you're gonna light up a spliff in the back of a bus you deserve to be sent to jail anyway.
Sorry CyberKat, but if you try not to think about these things then you probably won't care. But then everyone will just say "Deny ignorance."

I live in the UK, and has already been mentioned earlier, we have a hell of a lot of cameras filming us here.

We have roadside cameras, cameras in the cities,even cameras in small villages (we got them in my village,population 2554). We have them at traffic signals, tube stations, railway stations, the list is endless.

I have no problem with them. If i am abiding by the law, then no worries. Step out of line, then i deserve whats coming.

As i see things right now, they are there to offer me some kind of protection.The only problem i would have is, if they were in installed in public toilets. Now that would be tantamount to invasion of privacy. Hell, you could be seeing me take a leak on some site that streams this kind of thing.
Scary stuff eh?

I don't understand the UK. It's no different then a prison island. Gun bans, survelliance watching you 24/7, National ID's just around the corner. Do people there actually think it's to their benefit? I guess people there just don't value freedom.

In the old Days. The English people couldn't "sh@g" without the permission of the King.

Looks like the UK is rediscovering its past.

It evens has test programs like "Big Brother".

(sarcasm intended.)

I wouldn't like cameras in toilets. It's mainly because I can't go when someone's watching me unless I'm really desperate.

But really, it boils down to being a law abiding citizen. Being a London teenager, I know of the ghettos we have and how rough and tough some w***ers think they are so hopefully they'll get busted, deported and gotten rid of.

Originally posted by sugeshotcha
How can all these places and organisations keep filming us without our permission?

No permission is required, you are in public.

Without this warning shouldn't we be able to see sue, and also, wouldn't this be a breach against the privacy laws??

Your privacy has no more been breeched by the cameras than by the eyes of the other people on the bus.

cyberkate
Here, in the US, I guess that under the Patriot Act, just about anything goes.

The patriot act has nothing to do with any of this. No one can expect to not be viewed when they are in public.

but you don't have to be breaking the law to want to go on an airline and not have your underwear examined,

The airlines are the private property of the company that owns them, and if they want to make ya take yer shoes off before ya get on, thats their perogative, that's their liberty.

Also airlines call out people for extra checks who either have a one way ticket or booked it the day before the flight. It happens to my mum all the time.