Context is King: Privacy Perceptions of Camera-based Surveillance

Abstract

In an age of increasing camera-based surveillance, there is also an increase in privacy concerns being voiced by the surveilled. Camera surveillance systems are expanding beyond law enforcement and public safety applications towards "video analytics" scenarios that act as a source of data for business and planning decisions. It is necessary for us to consider how perceptions of privacy may change under different conditions, so that appropriate safeguards can be designed for the relevant systems. Through an on-line survey, we determine that privacy concerns are not universal, and that they are heavily dependent on the specific context being considered. We find a wide distribution of perception between the respondents, and identify some of the underlying factors that lead to differences in opinion between different contexts.