British test "Bug" intelligent video system

This is the first time we have reported on Kent, England-based Viseum, but it will not be the last. The company is riding the British biometrics wave these days, the most recent example being its “Bug”, an intelligence video system that relies on a ring of nine cameras to identify and monitor suspicious individuals — especially those already suffering under restrictive anti-social behabior orders (Asbos) — as they move about on the street. (Eight cameras scan the area looking for fifty distinct behavioral traits, while only one zooms in on and tracks individuals.) “We have kids with Asbos telling us they hate the thing because it follows them wherever they go,” said Luton city CCTV chief Jason Butler, noting that his city has been testing the system for eighteen months. The cities of Chester and Exeter will soon deploy the Bug as well.

In other British biometrics news, local authorities in West Midlands and Greater Manchester are said to be in close consultation to deploy a UAV manufactured by Israel-based Top I Vision. Mounted with a smart camera, the hand-launched Casper 250 will be able to lock in on suspicious faces from 500 feet, as well as identify and track automobile licence plates. “Everybody would love to have the kit ready now,” said Manchester Chief Inspector Roger Hart. “It could be used on demonstrations and marches, and would have semi-covert use for drugs purchasing and terrorism.” First, however, his department will have to confront a problem faced by UAV-hungry local authorities everywhere: the Civil Aviation Authority prevents UAVs from flying in most commercial airspace.