Take a second to look around, can you see a camera?
If not, look a little harder. Are you sitting in public transport while you read this? Check again, we bet there’s a CCTV camera watching you.
Haven’t spotted it yet? If you are reading this on your mobile phone, chances are there is a camera built into your phone. On the other hand, if you’re reading this on your laptop, there’s more than likely a webcam pointing directly at you.
We use cameras in our daily lives, but do we know that we are being watched every day? CCTV is now something we take for granted, but most premises are equipped with it, the streets are full of it, and many private homes are now installing it. The average Briton is photographed 70 times a day, according to police figures, but where did it all start? How did the modest camera invented by Alexander Wolcott in 1840 become a crime-fighting machine?
The History of CCTV in the Western World
1942 – By 1942, World War II was in full swing and technology was developing rapidly. The first CCTV camera known to us was developed by Siemens AG in Germany. It was built to observe the launching of rockets during the war. Let’s give a huge * high-five * to Walter Bruch who installed and designed the revolutionary system.
1949 – An American company introduces the first commercial CCTV television system. That year, a government contractor named Vericon began promoting the system. The technology used in this product is little known, but the video cannot be recorded, it can be used as a live surveillance system.
1968 – The invention of the well-known technology of the advanced CCTV recorder. Olean, New York was the first city in the world to install CCTV cameras along its main street.
1973 – The NYPD in New York City installed cameras to monitor and deter crime in Times Square, but rates did not drop as expected.
1980s – Despite cameras having little effect on crime reduction, video surveillance began to spread in the United States.
1985 – After many unsuccessful attempts in the 1970s, the UK took a leap of faith and installed the first outdoor video surveillance system in the beautiful seaside town of Bournemouth.
1987 – In King’s Lynn, Norfolk, the council established the first local government monitoring system. The installation of cameras has proven to be effective in deterring crime. This has led to a dramatic increase in the number of CCTV cameras installed in public places.
1998 – More than 3,000 video surveillance cameras are now in use in New York City, and private companies and government organizations are investing heavily in the technology.
2001 – After the September 11 attacks in New York, video surveillance was considered a key tool in the fight against terrorism and the use of surveillance cameras exploded worldwide.
2013 – The British Security Industry Authority (BSIA) estimates that Britain has one CCTV camera for every 11 people. This represents 5.9 million active cameras in the country.
