Surveillance Gear Discounts http://surveillancenow.info Sat, 23 Aug 2008 13:26:26 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.2 en Video Remote Surveillance http://surveillancenow.info/video-remote-surveillance/video-remote-surveillance/ http://surveillancenow.info/video-remote-surveillance/video-remote-surveillance/#comments Sat, 23 Aug 2008 13:26:26 +0000 admin http://surveillancenow.info/?p=17 Video Remote Interpreting (VRI) is a service utilizing video cameras to provide sign language interpreting services without an interpreter present. A typical VRI setup involves a deaf and hearing user at one location with a camera and television screen, and an interpreter at another location, typically a call center, who also has a camera and television screen. Both cameras offer video and audio connectivity, and the interpreter facilitates communication between the deaf and hearing users who are located together. The hearing person can be heard by the remote interpreter, who interprets into sign language that the deaf person can see on the television monitor. In turn, the deaf person signs to the camera and the interpreter can see what is being said, and then voices it for the hearing person to hear.

Video Remote Interpreting is still a growing field. One of its most popular applications is in the emergency room setting in hospitals. In this setting, it is essential that the deaf patient can communicate readily with medical personnel, but it may take some time for an interpreter to arrive onsite. Hospitals with VRI technology can immediately connect with a remote interpreter and conduct triage and intake surveys with the deaf patient without any delay.

Using VRI for medical, legal and mental health settings is is controversial in the Deaf community, as many feel it doesn't provide appropriate communication access--particularly in medical settings where the patient's ability to watch the screen or sign clearly to the camera may be impaired. However, businesses and organizations argue that it greatly exceeds the minimum threshhold for reasonable accommodation.

Video Remote Interpreting is distinct from Video Relay Service (VRS) in that it is intended for users who are in the same location. According to FCC regulations, deaf and hearing people in the same room are not permitted to use VRS to communicate, because this service is not designated as receiving funding from Telecommunications Relay Service taxes. The FCC requires that if a VRS interpreter determines callers are in the same location, they must advise both parties that they need to use VRI to communicate, and the interpreter must terminate the call. Thus, VRI is only for persons in the same location, who can be seen and heard over one audiovisual connection - if users are in different locations, they should use VRS to communicate through the phone system.

The terms Video Remote Interpreting and Video Relay Service should not be confused. The latter was originally called Video Relay Interpreting, but the name was changed and now the terms refer to two separate and distinct services

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]]> http://surveillancenow.info/video-remote-surveillance/video-remote-surveillance/feed/ Outdoor Transmitters http://surveillancenow.info/outdoor-transmitters/transmitters/ http://surveillancenow.info/outdoor-transmitters/transmitters/#comments Sat, 23 Aug 2008 13:18:39 +0000 admin http://surveillancenow.info/?p=16 A transmitter is an electronic device which, usually with the aid of an antenna, propagates an electromagnetic signal such as radio, television, or other telecommunications. In other applications signals can also be transmitted using an analog 0/4-20 mA current loop signal.

Transmitter types
In radio electronics and broadcasting, a transmitter usually has a power supply, an oscillator, a modulator, and amplifiers for audio frequency (AF) and radio frequency (RF). The modulator is the device which piggybacks (or modulates) the signal information onto the carrier frequency, which is then broadcast. Sometimes a device (for example, a cell phone) contains both a transmitter and a radio receiver, with the combined unit referred to as a transceiver. A common consumer electronics device is a Personal FM transmitter, a very low power transmitter generally designed to take a simple audio source like an iPod, CD player, etc. and transmit it a few feet to a standard FM radio receiver. In the USA, most personal FM transmitters fall under Part 15 of the FCC regulations to avoid any user licensing requirements.

In amateur radio, a transmitter can be a separate piece of electronic gear or a subset of a transceiver, and often referred to using an abbreviated form; "XMTR".

In industrial process control, a "transmitter" is any device which converts measurements from a sensor into a signal to be received, usually sent via wires, by some display or control device located a distance away. Typically in process control applications the "transmitter" will output an analog 4-20 mA current loop or digital protocol to represent a measured variable within a range. For example, a pressure transmitter might use 4 mA as a representation for 50 psig of pressure and 20 mA as 1000 psig of pressure and any value in between proportionately ranged between 50 and 1000 psig. (A 0-4 mA signal indicates a system error.) Older technology transmitters used pneumatic pressure typically ranged between 3 to 15 psig (20 to 100 kPa) to represent a process variable.

Generally and in communication and information processing, a transmitter is any object (source) which sends information to an observer (receiver). When used in this more general sense, vocal cords may also be considered an example of a transmitter.

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]]> http://surveillancenow.info/outdoor-transmitters/transmitters/feed/ Covert Listening Devices http://surveillancenow.info/covert-listening-devices/spy-bug/ http://surveillancenow.info/covert-listening-devices/spy-bug/#comments Mon, 28 Jul 2008 19:45:28 +0000 admin http://surveillancenow.info/?p=15 Surveillance devices, or "bugs", are not really a communications medium, but they are a device that requires a communications channel. A "bug" usually involves a radio transmitter, but there are many other options for carrying a signal; you can send radio frequencies through the main wiring of a building and pick them up outside, you can pick up the transmissions from a cordless phones, and you can pick up the data from poorly configured wireless computer networks or tune in to the radio emissions of a computer monitor.

Bugs come in all shapes and sizes. The original purpose of bugs was to relay sound. Today the miniaturization of electronics has progressed so far that even TV pictures can be broadcast via bugs that incorporate miniature video cameras (something made popular recently during TV coverage sports events, etc.). The cost of these devices has dramatically fallen.

A recent trend has been the development of surveillance devices or bugs concurrently with that of popular electronic devices. For example, a new surveillance gadget system involves the insertion of recording devices and cameras and communication devices into MP3 players and laptops; the surveillance agents pretending to be listening to music with MP3 players (such as Walkmans) or using laptops then sit near their targets to record their conversation. The control center gives commands to the surveillance agents through the laptops. The popularity of such items as MP3/MP4 players and laptops helps mask the widespread surveillance conducted in society after 9/11. The system is employed by the Department of Homeland Security among others.

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]]> http://surveillancenow.info/covert-listening-devices/spy-bug/feed/ Computer surveillance http://surveillancenow.info/wireless-covert-cameras/computer-surveillance/ http://surveillancenow.info/wireless-covert-cameras/computer-surveillance/#comments Mon, 28 Jul 2008 19:43:02 +0000 admin http://surveillancenow.info/?p=14 Computer surveillance

At a basic level, computers are a surveillance target because large amounts of personal information are stored on them. Anyone who can access or remove a computer can retrieve information. If someone is able to install software on a computer system, they can turn the computer into a surveillance device.

Computers can be tapped by a number of methods, ranging from the installation of physical bugs or surveillance software to the remote interception of the radio transmissions generated by the normal operation of computers.

Spyware is computer software that is installed surreptitiously on a personal computer to intercept or take partial control over the user's interaction with the computer, without the user's informed consent.

While the term spyware suggests software that secretly monitors the user's behavior, the functions of spyware extend well beyond simple monitoring. Spyware programs can collect various types of personal information, such as Internet surfing habit, sites that have been visited, but can also interfere with user control of the computer in other ways, such as installing additional software, redirecting Web browser activity, accessing websites blindly that will cause more harmful viruses, or diverting advertising revenue to a third party. Spyware can even change computer settings, resulting in slow connection speeds, different home pages, and loss of Internet or other programs. In an attempt to increase the understanding of spyware, a more formal classification of its included software types is captured under the term privacy-invasive software.

In response to the emergence of spyware, a small industry has sprung up dealing in anti-spyware software. Running anti-spyware software has become a widely recognized element of computer security best practices for Microsoft Windows desktop computers. A number of jurisdictions have passed anti-spyware laws, which usually target any software that is surreptitiously installed to control a user's computer.

Legal issues related to spyware

Criminal law

Unauthorized access to a computer is illegal under computer crime laws, such as the U.S. Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, the U.K.'s Computer Misuse Act and similar laws in other countries. Since the owners of computers infected with spyware generally claim that they never authorized the installation, a prima facie reading would suggest that the promulgation of spyware would count as a criminal act. Law enforcement has often pursued the authors of other malware, particularly viruses. However, few spyware developers have been prosecuted, and many operate openly as strictly legitimate businesses, though some have faced lawsuits.

Spyware producers argue that, contrary to the users' claims, users do in fact give consent to installations. Spyware that comes bundled with shareware applications may be described in the legalese text of an end-user license agreement (EULA). Many users habitually ignore these purported contracts, but spyware companies such as Claria claim these demonstrate that users have consented.

Despite the ubiquity of EULAs and of "clickwrap" agreements, under which a single click can be taken as consent to the entire text, relatively little case law has resulted from their use. It has been established in most common law jurisdictions that a clickwrap agreement can be a binding contract in certain circumstances. This does not, however, mean that every such agreement is a contract or that every term in one is enforceable.

Some jurisdictions, including the U.S. states of Iowa and Washington, have passed laws criminalizing some forms of spyware. Such laws make it illegal for anyone other than the owner or operator of a computer to install software that alters Web-browser settings, monitors keystrokes, or disables computer-security software.

In the United States, lawmakers introduced a bill in 2005 entitled the Internet Spyware Prevention Act, which would imprison creators of spyware.

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]]> http://surveillancenow.info/wireless-covert-cameras/computer-surveillance/feed/ Security Cameras http://surveillancenow.info/security-cameras/security-cameras/ http://surveillancenow.info/security-cameras/security-cameras/#comments Mon, 28 Jul 2008 19:40:01 +0000 admin http://surveillancenow.info/?p=13 Closed-circuit television (CCTV) is the use of video cameras to transmit a signal to a specific, limited set of monitors. It differs from broadcast television in that the signal is not openly transmitted, though it may employ point to point wireless links. CCTV is often used for surveillance in areas that may need monitoring such as banks, casinos, airports, military installations and convenience stores. The increasing use of CCTV in public places has caused a debate over public surveillance versus privacy. People can also buy consumer CCTV Systems for personal, private or commercial use. A more advanced form of CCTV, utilising Digital Video Recorders (DVR), provides recording for possibly many years, with a variety of quality and performance options and extra features (such as motion-detection and email alerts). In industrial plants, CCTV equipment may be used to observe parts of a process from a central control room; when, for example, the environment is not comfortable for humans. CCTV systems may operate continuously or only as required to monitor a particular event.

Monitoring for safety

A CCTV system may be installed where an operator of a machine cannot directly observe people who may be injured by unexpected machine operation. For example, on a subway train, CCTV cameras may allow the operator to confirm that people are clear of doors before closing them and starting the train. Operators of an amusement park ride may use a CCTV system to observe that people are not endangered by starting the ride. A CCTV camera and dashboard monitor can make reversing a vehicle safer, if it allows the driver to observe objects or people not otherwise visible.

Traffic monitoring

Many cities and motorway networks have extensive traffic-monitoring systems, using closed-circuit television to detect congestion and notice accidents. Many of these cameras however, are owned by private companies and transmit data to drivers' GPS systems.

The London congestion charge is enforced by cameras positioned at the boundaries of and inside the congestion charge zone, which automatically read the registration plates of cars. If the driver does not pay the charge then a fine will be imposed. Similar systems are being developed as a means of locating cars reported stolen.

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]]> http://surveillancenow.info/security-cameras/security-cameras/feed/ Surveillance http://surveillancenow.info/surveillance/surveillance/ http://surveillancenow.info/surveillance/surveillance/#comments Sun, 15 Jun 2008 23:20:29 +0000 admin http://surveillancenow.info/?p=6 Surveillance

Surveillance is the monitoring of behavior. Systems surveillance is the process of monitoring the behavior of people, objects or processes within systems for conformity to expected or desired norms in trusted systems for security or social control. Clinical surveillance refers to the monitoring of diseases or public health–related indicators (for example symptoms indicating an act of bioterrorism) by epidemiologists and public health professionals.

Although the word surveillance in French literally means "watching over", the term is often used for all forms of observation or monitoring, not just visual observation. Nevertheless, the all-seeing "eye in the sky" is still a general icon of surveillance. Surveillance in many modern cities and buildings often uses closed-circuit television cameras. Although surveillance can be a useful tool for law enforcement and security companies, many people have concerns about the loss of privacy.

The word surveillance is commonly used to describe observation from a distance by means of electronic equipment or other technological means.

Surveillance Equipment Demo:

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