Big Brother Expo
Monday, June 16, 2008 at 04:51PM By W.J. Hennigan / Washington Times
Dozens of security companies gathered in the District last week to show off their newest products in hopes of snagging government contracts. But their cutting edge technology may also be cutting in on citizens' privacy, civil liberties groups say.
The ADT SecTech Expo celebrated its 10-year anniversary June 6 at the Atrium Hall at the Ronald Reagan Building & International Trade Center. The vacant space was transformed into a top-secret command center as ADT Security Services unveiled the latest in security technology. Many big-name security companies were on-hand, including: Honeywell Security, Bosch Security Systems, and General Electric Security.
Products varied widely. There were identity management tools like LG's eye-scan technology, IrisAccess. Security platforms were also on display, such as Comtrak Technologies' video surveillance and digital recording systems and Cisco Systems' card access control.
But at the center of it all, the crown jewel of the show, was the SecTech Control Center. A collaboration from multiple vendors, the control center linked up cameras and security systems from around the nation. On multiple monitors, visitors could witness what was going on around the corner, or in a bagel shop in New York with just a simple click of the mouse.
The American Civil Liberties Union and the Electronic Privacy Information Center weighed in on the matter, saying the technology impeded on individual's right to privacy and did not ensure a drop in violent crime.
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