It’s pretty nuts. This was in the local paper this past weekend:
https://www.seattletimes.com/business/technology/magnolia-residents-ai-powered-surveillance-camera-tracks-people-cars-at-entrance-to-neighborhood-experts-caution-bias/
The article is full of info about how this guy set up the system, how it works, and how awesome the neighbors think it is, along with some generic “this might be misused” content thrown in for “balance.”
I read the article and was thinking, where is the interview with someone in the neighborhood who didn’t want this? I mean, this camera records the only access road to your home. The whole neighborhood has complete access to the full record. WTF.
Anyway, either everyone in the neighborhood is okay with it or the article authors didn’t think it was important to tell that side of the story. Either option is messed up if you ask me.
Oh yeah, at least they’re safer, right?
Since its installation in Magnolia last winter, Andrews said the system has already yielded evidence. A fellow neighbor’s home security camera captured a person jumping out of a car and grabbing a package from a resident’s property in March, but the footage wasn’t detailed enough to read the license plate.
The neighbors logged in to Flock Safety and within minutes they retrieved a still image of the suspected car’s license plate. It also revealed that the car had visited the area at 2 a.m. twice that month, Andrews said.
Great, the perps will be locked up soon!
He’s uncertain if SPD was able to solve the crime. While Seattle police spokesperson Sean Whitcomb confirmed the incident was reported to the police, he said it doesn’t appear the department has pursued an investigation using the footage.
Oh wait.
