Public CCTV surveillance schemes do not cut crime, or the fear of crime
From Spyblog:
Public CCTV surveillance schemes do not cut crime, or the fear of crime:
BBC and other media reports about a Home Office study into the effectiveness of CCTV surveillance spy cameras, chaired by Professor Martin Gill of the the University of Leicester, seem to bear out previous studies,which show that public CCTV camera surveillance schemes do not actually cut crime or the fear of crime.
We will link to the actual study if and when we can find it on the labyrinthine Home office website.
Thursday, 24 February, 2005, 14:03 GMT
CCTV systems ‘fail to cut crime’
Most CCTV fails to cut crime or make people feel safer, according to a research study.
Experts at the University of Leicester studied 14 systems across the country on behalf of the Home Office. They found only one area saw a drop in the number of incidents which could be attributed to CCTV. Professor Martin Gill, from the university, said: “Overall, areas have encountered real difficulties in using CCTV to good effect.”The study showed the only crime decrease attributable to CCTV focussed on reducing vehicle crime in car parks. Systems covered by the research included those in town centres, city centres, hospitals and residential areas. Professor Gill, from the university’s criminology department, said: “For supporters of CCTV these findings are disappointing. “For the most part CCTV did not produce reductions in crime and it did not make people feel safer.”
Staffing levels
Researchers said control room operation was an important factor in a CCTV system’s ability to detect crime. About half of the control rooms involved were staffed for less than 24 hours a day
Professor Gill said: “The truth is that CCTV is a powerful tool that society is only just beginning to understand. “It looks simple to use, but it is not. It has many components, and they can impact in different ways. “It is more than just a technical solution; it requires human intervention to work to maximum efficiency and the problems it helps deal with are complex.”
14 systems is hardly a scientific study. Larger studies show different results.
It’s proven that just having one installed, working or not, deters crime.
see neighbourhoodwatch.net
Our security cameras http://www.securityandmore.com/security-cameras.asp?Category_ID=74&Task=Category do a great job and we get compliments all the time.
The study chaired by Professor Martin Gill:
“The impact of CCTV: fourteen case studies”
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs05/rdsolr1505.pdf