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by cclements 4244 days ago
You know, reading this and some of the comments, especially about run-away authority with the “cops making stops to take money” make me think. I recoil as I’m sure many do about the increasing ubiquity of potential surveillance technology such as this. I think about the slippery slopes that we have evidence of (see: patriot act). But then another part of me thinks back to the “dirty cop” comment. It seems like cops carrying cameras is a strong mitigation to such behavior. The counter argument that such recordings might “going missing” when convenient for the officer comes up then. The sentiment I read often is the solution to that problem is citizens with cameras as well. And that brought me back to the notion of “ubiquity” again. If and when these things are everywhere, then they aren’t just in “normal citizen’s” homes, they are in NSA agent’s homes too, uploading details to the same manufacturer’s servers, carrying the same vulnerabilities. Of course, there are loopholes and restrictions authorities can implement, but can they get them all? A good chunk of my job is penetration testing, and my experience definitely makes me think not.
2 comments

"The counter argument that such recordings might “going missing” when convenient for the officer comes up then"

That's because it's what it is happening right now. See last week's trending HN story, especially the "the FBI provided two blank CDs, claiming the recording devices malfunctioned" bit (yeah, sure):

http://www.npr.org/2014/10/29/359725475/can-authorities-cut-...

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8527469

I think a better solution to the problem of the cop's recording going missing is to automatically find the cop guilty of everything he's accused of when that happens, without a trial. That'll stop that problem right quick.