A recent report out of the Minneapolis area about AI cameras being used to catch drivers holding their phone caught our attention. This sort of thing has been done all over the U.S. in the past while and is becoming increasingly common. While some hail the tech as revolutionary and life-saving, others believe it’s an erosion of constitutional rights as privacy is further eroded.
In the Minneapolis metro area, the cameras are being set up at temporary locations along Highway 7, a popular route that runs East-West, says CBS Minnesota. A sergeant with the Minnetonka Police Department excitedly told a reporter about how the community there “asked… for a solution” to the distracted driving problem.
That solution is the cameras which peer into cars as they drive down the highway. Artificial intelligence then determines if the driver was holding their phone. Police waiting nearby then speed off to pull over violators, either giving them a warning of a citation.
This is important because 472 people died on public roads in Minnesota last year, with 27 attributed to distracted driving. The solution is to surveil everyone.
Not surprisingly, the company which approached the state with this AI camera solution is based out of Australia. Down Under they have cameras everywhere and they bust people for supposedly not wearing seatbelts and all sorts of other violations.
In other words, it starts with speed cameras, then the distracted driving, then it’s all sorts of other violations cameras are used to uncover. This is why someone in Long Island has been covering cameras with fake flowers.
These or similar cameras are being used to bust drivers for holding their phones in Houston, North Carolina, Phoenix, Tampa and many other areas. Expect this sort of thing to come to your city soon, if it hasn’t already.
The ACLU calls these AI surveillance cameras “invasive technology” and the beginning of “indiscriminate mass surveillance.” The organization worries in the quest to save lives by cracking down on distracted driving, governments are chipping away at constitutional rights and civil liberties.
But not everyone agrees. Some are scared enough of the dangers on public roads, they think there needs to be more government surveillance instead of restraints. We expect people will be divided on whether these distraction detection cameras are a good thing or not.
This article originally appeared on The Auto Wire. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News. It is republished with permission.
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Catching people on cell phones is one thing, I’m all for that, but then I’m afraid they will start ticketing people if they take a drink of water, eat a french fry, smoke, etc, etc etc. It can start out as a good idea but eventually becomes something totally different and eradicating even more of our rights.
Sounds like becoming a police state to me. Big Brother is watching you!!!!!!!
The weak chicken littles of the world would absolutely give up their right’s for the illusion of safety to a nanny state.