[IP] Mission Creep meets Big Brother

[David Farber <dave@farber.net>]

________________________________________
From: David Lesher [wb8foz@panix.com]
Sent: Saturday, August 02, 2008 2:00 PM
To: David Farber
Subject: Mission Creep meets Big Brother

<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/01/AR2008080103570_pf.html>

Various Maryland police agencies are buying "Minority Report" license plate scanners
that mount on police cars. This segment says it all:

        Initially purchased to find stolen cars, a handful of so-called
        tag readers are in use across the Washington region to catch not
        just car thieves, but also drivers who neglected or failed their
        emissions inspections or let their insurance policies lapse. The
        District and Prince George's County use them to enforce parking
        rules.

Unmentioned is what happens to the data on legal plates. I imagine it
will soon be the case that DHS wants a permanent archive of who was
where, when. Rather like DNA data collection has morphed from those found
guilty of some violent crimes, to those arrested and NOT charged.

I feel safer already.



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