The Global Sociology Blog

So a right-wing French newspaper pulled a nasty little trick: it claimed to have scooped a government report that stated the effectiveness of video surveillance, something that contradicts evidence from other countries. Unfortunately, the government has now released the report and it shows the exact opposite (in line with research in other countries). So, what does the report show?

Efficace, la vidéosurveillance ? Le rapport qui nous mène en bateau… – bug brother sur LePost.fr via kwout

Bug Brother debunks the myth of effective video surveillance in five points:

1. The number of assaults increases faster in cities with moderate video surveillance than in cities with no such equipment.

2. The more surveillance cameras a city has, the lower its decrease in delinquency.

3. No “duster effect” according to the police precincts surveys. The “duster effect” is the idea that, as cities get equipped in surveillance cameras, delinquents will move on to areas that are camera-free.

4. Rates of crime resolution are lower in areas with than in those without surveillance cameras.

Efficace, la vidéosurveillance ? Le rapport qui nous mène en bateau… – bug brother sur LePost.fr via kwout

5. But what about deterrence? That is an argument often made: delinquents simply commit fewer crimes where there is equipment (often used as a substitute for the “duster effect”). According to academics specialized in video surveillance, effectiveness would actually mean increased numbers of detected delinquency as delinquent acts that used to be “invisible” are now detected. A decrease in detection would actually mean not much effectiveness, which is what the report proudly claimed.

Bottom line, the French government is pushing local collectivities to adopt video cameras and have them installed all over the territory. This will be costly (and probably unmanageable) so, it needed some positive data that might look convincing to mayors and other elected officials considering the investment. Unfortunately, this was a botched job and the aforementioned French right-wing paper fell for it.

Neoconopticon FAIL.