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Hi all some good, ntelligently balanced work on CCTV would be a good intervention for geography/ers. I always recall on this Sharon ZUkin`s avoidance of paranoia [Culture of Cities 1995] and our son, who has dyspraxi, a registered vulnerable adult, was able to benefit greatly frm CCTV when nearly smashed to pieces four years ago. Best David >>> D F J Wood <[log in to unmask]> 01/21/08 1:34 PM >>> Kelvin, > Does anyone know how one would find out about the number and location of CCTV cameras in an area (of the UK)? Count them! There is no national or local register required, although there have been many estimates. Some councils have maps of their own systems, though they are reluctant to release them. > Do we have the right to know where cameras are and who is operating them? You have the right to know if a system is operating and who operates it (hence the little signs now everywhere). You also have the right to request footage of yourself, but at a reasonable cost. > Are councils and private businesses operating under the same legislation - can anyone put up a camera anywhere, what permissions/licenses are required? Basically, there are no permissions needed except for compliance with conservation rules. Planning permission is not required, just adherence to the DPA which only controls information storage and sharing. > Has any academic/activist work been done on mapping and perhaps countering CCTV? Lots. You can start with www.surveillance-and-society.org particularly the CCTV special edition from 2004, and also the EU programme, www.urbaneye.net. There is also the SURVEILLANCE jiscmail list, which I'd advise you to join and ask the same question! (BTW, at Aberdeen there is also an excellent postgrad researcher on CCTV in the UK, Gavin Smith, in Sociology. You should talk to him) You could also come to the 3rd S&S conference on April 2-3 in Sheffield, which will have around 70 papers on surveillance from all kinds of perspectives... David. Dr David Murakami Wood Managing Editor Surveillance & Society http://www.surveillance-and-society.org/ Trustee Surveillance Studies Network (SSN) http://www.surveillance-studies.net <http://www.surveillance-studies.net/> mailto:[log in to unmask]