UK startup 'Internet Eyes' crowdsources retail surveillance
The UK is notorious for its use of CCTV cameras For a small monthly fee, UK shop owners can have their surveillance cameras watched by Internet users eager to catch shoplifters for a cash reward. But some Internet experts liken the concept to outsourcing police work.
The United Kingdom is notorious for its widespread use of CCTV surveillance cameras. Now, a new Internet startup is adding a twist to the privacy debate by bringing live streams of footage to viewers online. Devon-based "Internet Eyes" hopes to profit by rewarding Internet users who spot and report shoplifters.
The rewards can be as much as 1,000 British pounds (1,144 euros), and Internet privacy and civil liberties advocates describe the system as a privatization of law enforcement.
Internet Eyes went online on October 4, and its founder, Tony Morgan, said the site has garnered more than 1,000 viewers who have reported more than 135 possible incidents. The site prevents voyeurism by anonymizing feeds, which are switched every 20 minutes.
You can't use Internet Eyes for voyeuristic pleasures," Morgan told Deutsche Welle. "We've made sure that there's no way this can be done. With Internet Eyes you don't know where you're watching."
Service fee for businesses
When a user reports suspicious activity, a text message is sent to two mobile phone numbers selected by the store owner. It is then followed by a picture message of what was on the camera at the time. Immediately after reporting activity, users are transferred to a new feed so they can't see what transpires in the store.
Internet Eyes plans to make its money by charging a 75 pound monthly fee to storeowners who subscribe to the service, making it significantly less expensive than hiring a security guard. The company is providing its service free of charge for three months in the UK in the hopes winning over customers.
"It's very, very inexpensive," Morgan said. "If a retailer doesn't lose more than that (to shoplifting) during the course of a month, then he doesn't need our service. But that's highly unlikely."
Morgan says the UK's Information Commissioner's Office withdrew its initial objections to the service after Internet Eyes agreed to charge users a nominal fee to prevent abuse and limit itself to the European Union.
The UK is notorious for its use of CCTV cameras For a small monthly fee, UK shop owners can have their surveillance cameras watched by Internet users eager to catch shoplifters for a cash reward. But some Internet experts liken the concept to outsourcing police work.
The United Kingdom is notorious for its widespread use of CCTV surveillance cameras. Now, a new Internet startup is adding a twist to the privacy debate by bringing live streams of footage to viewers online. Devon-based "Internet Eyes" hopes to profit by rewarding Internet users who spot and report shoplifters.
The rewards can be as much as 1,000 British pounds (1,144 euros), and Internet privacy and civil liberties advocates describe the system as a privatization of law enforcement.
Internet Eyes went online on October 4, and its founder, Tony Morgan, said the site has garnered more than 1,000 viewers who have reported more than 135 possible incidents. The site prevents voyeurism by anonymizing feeds, which are switched every 20 minutes.
You can't use Internet Eyes for voyeuristic pleasures," Morgan told Deutsche Welle. "We've made sure that there's no way this can be done. With Internet Eyes you don't know where you're watching."
Service fee for businesses
When a user reports suspicious activity, a text message is sent to two mobile phone numbers selected by the store owner. It is then followed by a picture message of what was on the camera at the time. Immediately after reporting activity, users are transferred to a new feed so they can't see what transpires in the store.
Internet Eyes plans to make its money by charging a 75 pound monthly fee to storeowners who subscribe to the service, making it significantly less expensive than hiring a security guard. The company is providing its service free of charge for three months in the UK in the hopes winning over customers.
"It's very, very inexpensive," Morgan said. "If a retailer doesn't lose more than that (to shoplifting) during the course of a month, then he doesn't need our service. But that's highly unlikely."
Morgan says the UK's Information Commissioner's Office withdrew its initial objections to the service after Internet Eyes agreed to charge users a nominal fee to prevent abuse and limit itself to the European Union.
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