A Brief History of CCTV Surveillance What a difference a few decades can make in technology. In the field of video surveillance, it is considerable. In its beginnings in the mid 1960s, a closed circuit camera was linked to a monitor for a live feed and observed by an individual at all times. If an illegal activity was observed, security personnel were notified and sent to the offender for apprehension. Video surveillance genuinely hit its stride when video cassette recorders hit the market, making it possible to record and retrieve evidence that would uphold in court. There was an explosion of video surveillance activity around the world as this technology hit the mass market. It was especially prevalent in law enforcement, traffic control and divorce proceedings. In the 1980s, store owners and banks quickly picked up on the value of surveillance. Any business that was prone to theft, such as mini-markets, gas stations and liquor stores began seeing the value of surveillance systems as a crime deterrent and as a means of apprehending thieves with the hope of retrieving stolen property in high crime areas. The insurance industry began to see the benefits to recorded surveillance as well, especially in cases of workman's compensation fraud, when recordings of a claimant could show them performing activities that were supposedly impossible under their claims of injury. As the cost of video tape recorders dropped through the 70s and 80s, the private sector, embraced analog technology to record primarily the worst in human nature; cheating spouses and abusive parents and babysitters. With the new technology, private detectives were able to present evidence that was more compelling than still photos. Video recordings became more prevalent in family court. The downside to analog tapes was their life span. Video tapes wore out over time and the quality of the image declined with each over-recording. They also didn't record well in low light situations or at night. Although the concept was valid, the technology was not yet advanced enough to satisfy this need. Enter the 1990s and the next phase in CCTV, the introduction of the CCD (Charged Coupled Device which used microchip computer technology and allowed the possibility of low light and night-time recording. Another major advancement in the history of video surveillance occurred in the 1990s, the advent of Digital Multiplexing. When these units became affordable to the masses it revolutionized the surveillance industry. The multiplexer allowed the simultaneous recording of several cameras as well as added features like time-lapse and motion-only recording. These advances saved a great deal of wasted videotape. By the mid-90s, ATMs across the United States and throughout most parts of the world had cameras installed to record each transaction. The first attack on the World Trade Center in 1993 ushered in yet another era for the surveillance industry as the New York Police Department, FBI and CIA all install cameras throughout the area, to completely canvas the grounds for the sake of security. Not long after, many countries are also using CCTV or video taped surveillance to cover major sporting events that could be potential targets for terrorists, including Giants Stadium when in 1994 we hosted the World Soccer Games. As the price of digital recording dropped, it just made more sense for more businesses to embrace the technology. Connected to the advances in computer technology, surveillance no longer had to rely on the daily changing of tapes, but could put as much as a month's worth of surveillance on a hard drive thanks to compression capability and low cost. Digitally recorded images were so much sharper and cleaner than their grainy predecessors on video tape. The recognition factor had improved so dramatically by 1997 that it did not take police departments, private investigators and others very long to realize their benefit. Soon, more and more cameras were in public buildings and public spaces such as parks and housing projects. Cameras became mobile as well and were incorporated into vans for surveillance of rallies, parades and festivals as well. With the miniaturization of lenses and cameras came a new boon to the surveillance industry, covert observation. As more and more women pursued full-time careers and motherhood a new niche market evolved; the nanny cam. This allowed parents the opportunity to monitor what was happening between the kids and the babysitter or housekeeper when they were gone. The huge success and popularity of the nanny cam pushed the industry to develop, almost monthly, ever-smaller, higher resolution cameras that could be hidden almost anywhere. September 11, 2001 was an eye-opener for the world. The terrorist attack on the World Trade Center changed forever the public's view of video surveillance. It was no longer an issue of something that would never affect them, but is now something of great importance and lasting consequences. Great strides by software developers refined programs to enhance video surveillance by developing facial recognition programs. These programs could compare key facial points in order to match recorded faces and mug shots of know criminals and terrorists in an existing data base. A little iffy at first, refinements increased reliability over time and software was phased into use by law enforcement in some areas. In May of 2002, the United States Parks Service installed face recognition software on the computer video surveillance cameras at the Statue of Liberty and Elliss Island. Facial identification programs are being used at airports to expedite border processing for aircrew pilots and crewmembers. The system scans the crewmembers face and compares it to the passport photo in a matter of ten seconds or less. Face recognition video surveillance has also been incorporated to track missing children and registered sex offenders. With the incorporation of the internet it is now possible to virtually view a surveillance emplacement from anywhere in the world from a laptop computer and store it for further scrutiny. The big eye in the sky has become a reality through orbiting satellites and streaming video. With the advent of cell phones capable of photographing and sending images or video across the internet it is now possible for just about anyone to observe, capture, send, store and retrieve anyone's actions without their knowing it. The phone with streaming video technology may soon be incorporated by law enforcement agencies to replace the obtrusive cameras in place today. An agent of the law could quickly capture and send an image or video capture of a suspect back to a database for matching against the face of a known criminal or terrorist. Working the other way, when new Amber alerts are issued, officers in the field could receive video clips quickly and efficiently. Advances in technology will continue as will techniques in surveillance capture and retrieval. For what end and to what extent this will all be incorporated in a free society remains to be played out.