This is Vancouver Should Surrey police get 24/7 access to traffic cameras?
13 snips
Jan 7, 2026 Tamir Israel, Director of the Privacy, Surveillance and Technology Program at the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, dives into the heated debate over Surrey police gaining 24/7 access to traffic cameras. He highlights the potential for abuse in centralized surveillance and the erosion of public trust if cameras are repurposed. Tamir cautions against deploying facial recognition due to significant error rates and inherent racial biases. His insights emphasize the need for strict oversight and alternative solutions to enhance safety without compromising privacy.
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Limit Live Access To Emergencies
- Give police faster access only with strict, predefined limits and oversight.
- Require emergency-only live access and retain case-by-case review for other footage.
Centralized Access Changes The Game
- Centralized, direct police access is qualitatively more intrusive than ad-hoc requests.
- Repurposing traffic cameras creates surveillance creep and undermines trust in original limits.
AI Layering Raises New Risks
- Live feeds enable rapid deployment of intrusive algorithmic tools like video analytics.
- Without governance, layering AI on camera networks risks error-prone, discriminatory policing.