"Daily Mail" reporter released: November 10, 2013 12: 31 EDT | update: 13: 34 EDT on November 10, 2013, Las Vegas is currently installing smart street lamps for their wellslit city.
But smart Street is not just any street. Lighting system.
Wireless, LED lighting, computer
The operated lights can not only illuminate the streets, but also play music, interact with pedestrians, and feature a video screen that displays police alerts, weather alerts, and traffic information.
High-tech lights can also broadcast live video of the event in the surrounding areas.
But there is a major problem.
These new street lights, launched with government funding, are also able to record video and audio.
Neil Rohleder of the Public Works Department told NBC News 3 in Las Vegas that the main reason for installing the new lighting system was not to record anyone or anything.
What we want to develop is not just street lamp components, says Rohleder.
"We want to provide an experience for people who come to the city center.
But some residents are concerned that the lights that are currently being tested inside and around Las Vegas City Hall violate privacy.
Civil rights activist Daphne Lee told NBC News 3 that she was worried about her freedom as an American citizen.
"The technology, you know, will take us to a place where you will basically be monitored from the moment you leave home to the moment you return home," Li said . ".
On the Intellistreets website, inventor Ron Harwood explained that cameras for monitoring and recording devices can be installed in lamps and lanterns.
But Jorge Cervantes, director of public works at Las Vegas, told News 3 that in the near future, the recorded pedestrians were not on the cards.
Now our intention is that there is no camera or recording device, says Servantes.
It's just to provide the output, not to get any feedback or video feedback back.
Nevertheless, the lights are touted as safety devices that can help with "Homeland Security" measures by providing applications such as video surveillance and motion sensors.
Li wants to know who is protecting our rights?
Li said in an interview with News 3 that we said it was a free land.
"People have a reasonable right to privacy.
But Harwood defended his lighting system during a conversation with MSNBC in 2011.
"I found that when I had to go to the airport and had to take most of my clothes off and walk through the scanner, it was more intrusive than anything the smart Street did, Harwood said.
Some cities in the UK and the Netherlands already have street lights that can talk and shoot surveillance videos.
They also condemned minor violations such as littering.
In addition to the recording function, the smart street lamp also has energy saving effect.
They use much less energy than traditional street lighting systems.
"Led lamps" are displayed on the company's website "(lighting)
When increasing Intellistreets PTM, more than 50% of energy is saved (Post Top Module)
The energy of the light engine is further reduced by 25%, and the service life is extended by 3 years.
When the lights are controlled by the remote Internet
Harwood told MSNBC that he was not worried about hacking because the system was encrypted. 'If (hacking)
Harwood said that once this happens, the system will issue a warning and shut down.