New scheme to give police access to home surveillance cameras

Would you like police to have access to your home security cameras? That is the proposal from a former detective who wants to create an enormous statewide surveillance network. He says it will save officers pounding the pavement and help catch crooks faster.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:04):
Youth offending, home invasions and car thefs have the community
on edge, but a former cop has found a tech
savvy way to catch more crooks in the act.

Speaker 2 (00:14):
So the Safer Places Network is a national free platform
for community to contribute to which will allow police to
access the location and the owner's details of security cameras.

Speaker 1 (00:25):
Home security cameras from around the country are registered in
a database. Police can then seek access to vision when
a crime occurs, sending an SMS to the owner to
request instant permission to obtain the footage.

Speaker 2 (00:38):
Your information stays on our system and you can access it,
remove it, modify whenever you want to, and you approve
every access that the police are requested.

Speaker 1 (00:47):
It's currently in the pilot phase and needs the support
of police agencies. Bayside Neighborhood Watch wants to make it
a reality where crime has jumped seven percent in the
past year.

Speaker 3 (01:00):
Residents looking after themselves and helping the police can't be
around the corner all the time, so I'll know it's
after the event, but this will help them.

Speaker 4 (01:08):
Each year, Victorian police spend more than one million hours
knocking on doors and collecting footage, costing taxpayers roughly two
hundred million dollars it's home to. This method will save
time and money, helping to catch crooks faster, giving people
the power to take back control of their safety.

Speaker 1 (01:28):
Ainsley Cosh, seven News