Personal Surveillance devices

RodinBangkok · Posted: May 18 2013 Post subject: Personal Surveillance devices

There's been a lot of press about these eye glass type surveillance devices lately. First off I think they should be categorized as a surveillance device, not as a brand name which I won't use here to promote it.
We are having a small debate internally now about how to handle these when they hit the market. I've got pretty strong feelings that this type of device has crossed the line with regards to maintaining personal privacy, and providing an environment free from such intrusions in spaces we control.
Here's a few scenarios we're talking about, keep in mind there are No surveillance device signs posted in the establishment:

Person requesting a table, or a member of the party wearing said device.

Person walks up to service counter to place an order wearing said device.

Person approaches and asks a question to any staff member in the establishment wearing said device.

Your response:
(As you are probably being recorded when this happens, your initial response will be important.)

I'm sorry the device your wearing is against our policies here, and I cannot respond concerning your question until you shut off and remove that device.

If the person responds they need it for medical condition, and the condition is not obvious, we then ask them to show a medical alert bracelet that reflects that need.

Everyone seems to have rolled over on the issue to taking pictures anywhere and everywhere with phones these days, but I think these type of devices cross a line that we all should not allow to be crossed.

How would you respond as an individual when approached by someone wearing one of these?
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kurtsara · Posted: May 18 2013 Post subject:

I must not follow the latest stuff, I have no clue what you are talking about, curious though.
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RodinBangkok · Posted: May 18 2013 Post subject:

For those not up to speed its called google glass. Basically everything the user see's when wearing this device can be recorded and or photographed or audio recorded and uploaded to a cloud server. There is no way to know if the user is recording or not.

Here's a Vid Report:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-22538854
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GF · Posted: May 18 2013 Post subject:

RodinBangkok, I'm guessing because of the price point on those now, you'll have some time to figure it out.

Alot of bars and resturaunts around me have "no cell phone use" signs up, most politely,(some not so much), ask for compliance.

As a business owner I think you have a right for yourself and a responsibility for your customers to maintain a enjoyable, video free enviorment.

Harry Nutczak · Posted: May 18 2013 Post subject:

The higher technology items like this are very easily defeatable if you know their limitations and capabilities.

I haven't looked at the specifications yet, but I bet it would be real easy to overload the video chip with infrared leds in the correct nanometer range, they would be invisible to the naked eye, not harmful to humans, but I'm betting I could raise hell with the software with them.

Where is the actual recording media? is it a remote wireless deal? If so, thats even easier to defeat than blinding the camera.

Personal Surveillance?? I am betting this is to help document a crime against the wearer so the criminal can be caught later. Great passive system, but I prefer to be proactive and carry other hardware instead.
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daddywoofdawg · Posted: May 18 2013 Post subject:

Why worry about it?and they would have to have wi-fi to load to the cloud.
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qfanatic01 · Posted: May 18 2013 Post subject:

An example might be the food network shows where they wire a place to uncover problems and send in patrons who are wired. It would be easy to kill a business if you spent enough time recording your going to uncover mistakes by the staff that could be blown out of proportion. I had surveillance at my first restaurant and as we grow and my family can't always be here I feel a need to cover my butt. I am planning to install a system here too. At this point I don't feel my customers use is an issue. We have people taking pictures of their meals on a regular basis, totally in a positive way. They help me market my place. If I or others somehow get stung with this technology I might reconsider my opinion.
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Lost Nation · Posted: May 18 2013 Post subject:

I have nothing to hide, surveillance away

lantern · Posted: May 18 2013 Post subject:

I fully understand your worry.

You have no idea how they plan to edit the video. A great dining experience can be made to look horrible via some clever editing.

Also as a DINER I would have big problems being recorded by a stranger since I can't even stand pictures taken by family members. I'd hate to put my customers in the same boat. I'd worry that they would think their feelings weren't cared for by the owner of the business and decide not to return and tell others the same.

Taking pics of the food? No prob. But videoing everything and every person they can see eating is as aggravating as the family of loud pricks I had to endure last night playing their wine glasses while we were out on date night. Evil or Very Mad

Harry Nutczak · Posted: May 19 2013 Post subject:

this topic brought up a memory from a few years back that happened in my area;

We had a group of people charter a private plane to get here to go snowmobiling for the weekend, they went from bar to bar and got stupid stumbling drunk, then got on their rented snowmachines, started riding off of the marked trails with the throttle pegged to the bars, the lake ended a little quicker than the driver expected and he whacked a tree at around 100 MPH, and died with a BAC over .300.
Well, the guy who dies was some popular sportscaster from Chicago! So we got invaded by reporters with hidden cameras to examine "Wisconsin's Alcohol Culture" and how "the snowmobile rental places hand out maps to the bars"

I saw a weeks worth of our local dive-bars on the Chicago news, and reporters blaming the deaths on bartenders, trails that are not lighted and marked like the interstate, and every other thing but where blame should be placed. (the drunk idiots who drank and rode snowmachines and whacked a tree)

Anyways, find out the specs on these personal survelience devices, and I'll have a low-tech DIY jamming system for them in a day or two. and for less than $50.00 USD.

I would either go radio jamming, or overload the camera with non-visible light. Easy peasey
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ocbbqman · Posted: May 30 2013 Post subject:

The glasses have 12G of useable storage space and can connect to your phone via bluetooth, and are also WiFi compatible. They can record video including audio.

I think the concern is not so much how your business operates, but having an employee answer a question on behalf of your company and it being posted on the internet.

Many bars have already said they are not allowed, and most of Vegas is banning them as well.

Not to mention many of your customers may not like being recorded or photographed without being informed. With a phone or camera it is obvious what they are doing, but with the glasses it is not so easy to tell.
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