Effect of Body Worn Cameras on Security Guards
By each passing day, population of this world is increasing. This is also giving a sharp rise in technology and science. Now a day, we can see a lot of sublime inventions near us. These inventions make our lives easier. With the increasing population of a major city, there will definitely be a drastic increase in the crime rate. City Police has to deal with problems every day. For their ease, science has helped us by giving us Body Worn Cameras.
What is a Body Worn Camera?
Body Worn Cameras are as the name indicates, cameras that are worn on the body of an individual. As a result, the camera records the everyday life of that specific person. It is like have an extra eye. The camera is fitted in a metal box that has a battery in it. The battery is chargeable. The box is then attached to the front facing side of the individual’s body. So, the daily routine of that person is recorded in the camera. The recording made by the camera is saved in a memory card attached to the box so that the recording can be seen anytime.
Effects of Body Worn Cameras on Police Officers
Body Worn Cameras provide great help in a policeman’s daily life. If we see clearly, then we can see many advantages in this product. Body Worn Cameras provide great help in a policeman’s daily life. It behaves like a third eye in a way by increasing the sense of sight of the individual. It can be said because sometimes a person does not notice a minor detail around him with his eyes. But with the camera, he can see that again and again making it easy for him to point out the minor detail. Therefore, we can say that it causes a positive effect on police officers.
Can Security Guards Use Body Worn Cameras?
Body worn cameras can be used for many purposes. As we have discussed earlier, it has a lot of advantages. It sharpens the sense of sight by giving an extra eye in a way. The recorded video can facilitate the security guards in many ways but if we speak generally, then we can see that use of body worn cameras on security guards is not the same as that of police officers.
However, there is no specific rule that prohibits security guards from using body worn cameras. Companies can equip their guards with body worn cameras. But there will be certain disadvantages in case of security guards.
What is different in case of security guards?
As we can see that security guards have different purposes as compared to police officers. They do not need to travel to other places. Also, they don’t go anywhere for investigations. Therefore, body worn cameras are a bit more suited for police officer use instead of security guards. However, if the security guard happens to have an encounter with some violence makers or robbers, then the body worn cameras will provide the best output by recording their faces. But the trend of equipping a guard with body worn camera has not been seen in many companies.
Why haven’t most companies used body worn cameras on their guards:
We haven’t seen most companies equipping their guards with body worn cameras. There are some basic reasons for that. Let’s have a look at them:
Costs:
The main problem due to which most companies aren’t able to equip their guards with the body worn cameras is the high price of these cameras. With emerging technology, the cost of equipping security officers with body cameras is becoming more affordable but it is not insignificant. A single body worn camera set can be a quite expensive one in the market. It costs around $700-$800. Why is there a need for the companies to buy expensive cameras for their security guards? The police department is also facing the same problem.
The country’s police department is huge that requires a big number of cameras for the officers. We have an estimate that each camera for an officer costs nearly $800 that is a burden for the department. Therefore, it is a huge drawback of using body worn cameras.
Necessity:
Another factor that does not allow the companies to buy body worn cameras for their security guards is the necessity. As we have discussed earlier, there is not a particular need of body worn cameras in the duty hours of a guard. Although it effects the performance of the guard but not as much as it effects the police officers. Therefore, the companies don’t feel the need to buy body worn cameras for their security guards.
Privacy
It is obvious that the emergence of new technologies and social networks have changed the way people consider their privacy, but the recordings made by the body-worn cameras might allow for the potential use of facial recognition technology.
The usage of Body Worn Cameras gives guards an opportunity to record sensitive situations, but also to record the faces of people passing by that would be bad for their privacy. In regard to that, some law enforcement agencies have taken actions and have declared it against the privacy of people. This, as a result, is not good for the company.
Basic Training:
It is not sufficient to just give an officer a body camera and tell the officer to go out and use it. Policies on the use of the cameras (when the camera should be turned on or off, when to inform individuals that they are being recorded, how to upload data, etc.) should be established and officers should be trained to the policy.
Monitoring:
Body worn cameras can be used for monitoring the behavior of security guards. It makes the guard well mannered. With knowing that everything is being recorded, he will not be rash with others. At the same time, the person talking to the guard will also try to be well mannered and disciplined as he is being recorded. Therefore, companies can use these cameras to monitor their guards.
