Police Can Trace Cameras Thanks to Sensor Imperfection ‘Fingerprints’
Computer scientists at the University of Groningen have created a system to analyze the noise produced by individual cameras to help law enforcement fight child exploitation.
SF Police Are Using Autonomous Car Cameras as Surveillance Devices
Driverless vehicles have been tested on public San Francisco streets for several years, but a newly revealed training document shows the cameras that allow them to avoid obstacles are also being used by the police to surveil the public.
Photographer Robert Frank Was Jailed for Being ‘Suspicious’ in 1955
Photographers are often viewed with suspicion by police, and there are regular headlines about people being harassed and detained for simply shooting photos. However, being stopped by police for this type of "suspicious" behavior is not an issue unique to the digital age. Renowned photographer Robert Frank was even jailed for three days while driving through Arkansas in 1955 as he shot his famous photo book The Americans.
International Photojournalists Sue NYPD Over Arrests and Beatings
A group of five photojournalists who were arrested and or beaten during last year's protests against racial injustice has sued the NYPD in an attempt to stop what they call egregious and repeated violations of journalists' right to record police activity on public streets.
Portland Officer Indicted for ‘Excessive Force’ on Photog, Riot Squad Resigns
Every police officer in a crowd-control unit in Portland has resigned from the squad after one of its members was indicted on an assault charge for "excessive and unlawful" force against an activist photographer.
NPPA Gets Funding to Educate Police, Journalists About Right to Record
The NPPA has announced that it will instruct police, first responders, and journalists across the United States about citizens' right to record police and officials who are carrying out their public duties.
Belarus Protesters Use AI to ‘Unmask’ Riot Police Wearing Face Coverings
A Blarus-born digital artist named Andrew Maximov recently went viral after posting a video that shows how it is possible to "unmask" riot police who are violently cracking down on protesters in his home country, even if the only part of their face that is visible is their eyes.
NYC Mayor: Take a Photo to Report Social Distancing Rule Breakers
As New York City -- the US epicenter of the pandemic -- continues to battle the coronavirus, mayor Bill de Blasio is now asking New Yorkers to report people and businesses who are breaking social distancing rules by photographing them.
Are Your Social Media Photos Ending Up In a Law Enforcement Database?
Facial recognition is an incredibly useful consumer tool for organizing our burgeoning photo albums. Companies like Google and Apple have slowly integrated machine learning algorithms into their consumer photo products, which allow you to search by keywords without the need for manual tagging, or to simply click on a face to see more photos of that person.
Oregon Police Photoshopped Suspect to Look More Like Bank Robber
Police departments aren't often accused of unethical Photoshop manipulation, but that's the controversy that has erupted in Portland, Oregon. The police were discovered to have Photoshopped a suspects mugshot to make his face look more like the perpetrator in a bank robbery.
Cop Points Gun at Photog Because He ‘Doesn’t Know’ What a GoPro Is
Here's a video of a disconcerting encounter between a police officer and photographer that's making the rounds online. It shows a police officer in San Diego drawing his gun on the photographer filming because he "doesn't know" what the GoPro attached to the main camera is.
A Day in the Life of a Kiwi Police Officer Photographer
The Auckland, New Zealand police department posted this interesting 9-minute behind-the-scenes video that shows a day in the life of a Kiwi Police Photographer.
Britain’s Biggest Speed Camera Uses a Canon 100-400mm Lens
Gloucestershire police have unveiled Britain's biggest speed camera. Called the A417, the portable camera can catch drivers violating laws from roughly 1,000 meters or about 3/5 of a mile. And on the front of the camera is a Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS telephoto zoom lens.
Photographer Sues Cop Who Shot Him After Mistaking Camera for Gun
Back in September, Ohio photojournalist Andy Grimm was shot by a sheriff's deputy while photographing a traffic stop -- it turned out that the cop had mistaken Grimm's camera and tripod for a gun and decided to shoot first and look more closely later. Grimm is now filing a civil rights lawsuit against the officer and the city.
You Have a Constitutional Right to Take Photos of Police, Federal Court Affirms
Photographing and filming police officers in public is a constitutional right protected by the First Amendment. That's what a federal appeals court unanimously affirmed this week in cases involving Philadelphia officers retaliating against citizens pointing cameras at them.
The SFPD Cop Who Became the Official Historical Photographer
Peter Thoshinsky joined the San Francisco Police Department back in 1982. After serving as a cop for 31 years, his career in the department took a major turn: he became the official "historical photographer" for the SFPD.
Canadian Police Use DSLR and Scope to Snap Distracted Drivers from Afar
Police in Canada are using a super-telephoto camera setup to spot distracted drivers from afar and capture evidence of their misbehavior. The kit consists of a DSLR, 50mm lens, and a spotting scope.
I’ve Been Stopped Over 20 Times by Police for Having a Camera and Tripod
Recently I've been trying to get better at bracketing, where you take overexposed and underexposed photos and then merge them together. It can create a very neat effect when done correctly. It can also be abused, as many photographers tend to do, which results in unrealistic looking photography.
A few days ago, I was out playing with this feature in my hometown of Cheswick, Pennsylvania, to better understand it when I was stopped by police.
Tokyo to Catch Bad Drones Using Bigger Drones with Giants Nets
Tokyo's police force has come up with a clever solution for dealing with rogue drones: they're going to catch them using larger drones and giant nets.
Top Australian Photographer Fighting for Rights After ‘Near Arrest’ on Public Land
Ken Duncan, one of Australia's most famous landscape photographers, is publicly fighting for photographers' rights in Australia after being "nearly arrested" last Friday after being spotted by "Big Brother" while shooting on public land.