Unit 1 Surveillence technology (Computer science engineering)

Surveillance Technology unit 1

1. 21EEO305T - Surveillance Technology

2. Surveillance SURVEILLANCE TECHNOLOGY observing, sensing , or otherwise determining the presence or influence of persons, activities, or phenomena of interest, especially as regards protection of assets, territory, property, family, personal safety, power, commercial opportunities, or social relationships. Surveillance has the character of vigilance and observations or related data may be logged or recorded.

3. Introduction : There was a time when surveillance meant little more than spying from behind a bush. When humankind learned to fabricate metal and glass , it became possible to observe objects farther away, or smaller than the unaided eye could see, and surveillance entered the technological realm. Spy tools were originally luxuries , available only to nobility and the wealthiest merchants. It spawned an entrepreneurial swing toward defense projects, shifted priorities of venture capitalists, and gave governments license to move tax dollars into the purchase of high-end technology such as body scanners, biometrics equipment, increased border surveillance, and computer databases.

4. The term surveillance covers many forms of observation and information gathering . From wired secret agents to drug-sniffing dogs and portable DNA kits, there are many ways to gather and record data. Some forms of surveillance are so common, we don’t give them a second thought, like checking a peephole if someone is at the door, or glancing at Caller ID to see who phoned. Cradle-to-Grave Surveillance Surveillance begins before we understand the meaning of the word. Babies are fingerprinted, footprinted, and cheek-swabbed to collect DNA samples. Some have been implanted with rice-sized radio transceiving chips to monitor their whereabouts. By the time a child is three, he or she will be recorded tens of thousands of times, perhaps even displayed on video-sharing sites for the entertainment of the masses. The child has no choice and no control over how this happens or how it might affect his or her future.

5. In the past, surveillance was mainly aimed at observing business rivals or protecting property. Even national defense serves these aims , if one considers competing countries and national territory as a broad analogy. Street cams, employer security systems, and satellites chart our activities on a daily basis, and sometimes minute-by-minute. Some employers have tried to make off-duty monitoring a requirement of the job, a trend of concern to privacy advocates.

6. Significant Benefits C aretaker cams that monitor infants, handicapped individuals, and pets , S ecurity systems to protect livestock, property, and ATMs , s afety systems in industrial zones, hazardous areas, and toxic waste sites, Forensic tools for locating and analyzing evidence for solving crimes , S treet and highway cams that warn of traffic accidents or bottlenecks, ferry line-ups, and delays at border crossings, G lobal positioning systems (GPSs) that facilitate rescue operations, wildlife tracking, and navigation , A erial and marine monitors that aid in search and rescue, promote significant scientific discoveries, and help deter poaching and smuggling, Environmental surveillance that warns of earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, floods, and tornadoes , Specialized satellite data for monitoring human rights violations and military actions against unarmed civilians,

7. Military surveillance that prevents ambushes and keeps servicemembers out of harm’s way, S cientific surveillance to locate and monitor archaeological sites, global and local climate changes, ecology, and our place in the universe, and H ealth surveillance and medical diagnostics that provide early warnings and statistical information that can save countless lives.

8. Significant Discoveries and Inventions Almost any general-purpose process or component can be adapted for use with surveillance devices, but certain key inventions/discoveries stand out as important, including the harnessing of fire, glass and lenses, the discovery of the electron, the vacuum tube, energy-storage components such as capacitors and general-purpose batteries, recording mechanisms such as chemical and magnetic surfaces, equipment for sending and receiving acoustic waves, devices to generate and sense wavelengths invisible to the human eye, t he transistor, air and space travel, software to harness components utilizing microelectronics, and hardware and software to interconnect electronic devices.

9. Glass and Lenses Glass was observed sometime between 5000 and 3000 BC, at about the time of the early Bronze Age. As humans developed sea trade, mining, and the shaping of metal they discovered sand could melt with other materials to form translucent objects. Glass was initially used for trade and adornment. The production of glass and mirrors and the development of lenses followed, giving rise to spy glasses, spectacles, mirrors, and telescopes. Invention of the lens led to many practical tools to see with greater precision, or at greater distances. In this quest, telescopes became larger and longer , but there were tradeoffs in clarity and the amount of light needed to use them.

10. Discovery of the Electron One of the most significant milestones in human history is the discovery of the electron. It is a fundamental component of our universe and the basis for electrical conductivity, chemical reactions, and the functioning of computer circuits . Electrons balance the effects of positively charged neutrons and facilitate bonding between nearby atoms. The discovery of electrons and invention of simple vacuum tubes , which eventually were developed into cathode-ray tubes , are closely related. An understanding of electrons is also important to contemporary microelectronics, as some electrons may disrupt sensitive components.

11. R ecording Mechanisms paper and metal Paper-based data technologies have limitations, however. A great deal of paper is needed to store large amounts of data, and paper is easily shuffled out of order , lost, or damaged by moisture or fire. Metal is more durable, but also heavier and difficult to punch. floppy diskettes CDs and DVDs

12. Sending and Receiving Acoustic Signals over Distance Cupping your hands around your mouth and shouting is one way to send sound over distance , but it is limited to how loud you can shout and it is not very private. It was discovered that electricity and conductive wires could send sounds over longer distances , making it possible to transmit telegraph signals , usually via Morse code (a simple code of long and short pulses). People longed to send voice, however, so inventors sought ways to convert sound into electrical signals that could be turned back into sound at the receiving end. telephone, a device that was quickly adopted by a public eager to talk to distant friends and relatives. Wiretapping and eavesdropping began almost as soon as telegraph and telephone systems were invented.

13. The Discovery of Invisible Wavelengths Infrared is frequently used for motion sensors and remote control devices and ultraviolet is a valuable tool for revealing security features on financial documents or otherwise-hidden clues such as latent blood stains in forensics investigations. T he T ransistor

14. S ecuring D ata over D istances Older mainframes and miniframes were often housed in separate rooms or facilities, with entry/exit security, and only system administrators or authorized personnel had access to them . The new generation of desktop computers was wide open—vulnerability to snooping, hacking, and theft greatly increased. Dependence on desktop computers by government agencies and businesses, and the desire to interconnect them for communications and the sharing of data, also created concerns about the “ cyberspace highway ” being vulnerable to intrusion from remote locations. Encryption schemes were developed, with new, stronger ones appearing every few months, partly because software programmers enjoy the challenge of creating stronger encryption and partly because hackers and crackers keep breaking them. Despite their weaknesses, encryption made it possible to protect communications. Businesses were happy, but law enforcement and intelligence agencies became concerned that criminals could engage in secured communications with no possibility of interpretation. The days of traditional wiretaps were numbered.

15. Packet Switching Another strategy to facilitate the transmission and protection of computer data was the development of packet switching . A packet is a small unit of data. Breaking information into smaller units has advantages. T he W orld W ide W eb 1980s the Internet was almost entirely text-based scientists, computer science students, computer hobbyists, and intelligence agencies. It was not until the early 1990s, when Tim Berners-Lee embued the Internet with an accessible, easy-to-learn-and-apply graphical user interface that the rest of the world jumped in and the World Wide Web (WWW) was born.

16. The Generalizing Nature of Surveillance Changes in the way we do surveillance can be illustrated by changes in the way we fish. In the past, fishermen would throw out a line and hope to catch a cod or snapper. Fishing with line Gillnets Netting Now there are electronic fish-finders that give a detailed image and map of the surrounding marine landscape, including Global Positioning System (GPS) location statistics so the hot fishing spots can be found again.