The Boeing Company, which in late 2006 was awarded a multi-billion dollar grant for securing the US-Mexico Border, has put in a request for a fund increase from the US Department of Homeland Security. Boeing's goal is to secure the 1,957-mile border through a combination of traditional fences, aerial drones, surveillance cameras, and a large force of Border Patrol officers by 2008.

Thanks to surveillance cameras at  Nordstrom department stores in the Portland, OR area, police and FBI agents have identified Jamie Lynn Bacon, of Beaverton, OR, as the thief who has defrauded Nordstrom of nearly $10,000 since fall 2006.

2007 has been a controversial year for video surveillance in New York City. First, the controversial New York Civil Liberties Union report on public video surveillance and the release of the Surveillance Camera Project, and Katherine Mangu-Ward's counter-editorial on the benefits of public video surveillance.

Fifty nine video surveillance cameras currently watch over the Guadalupe county jail, and officials want more. Concerned with drug trafficking and prisoner safety, Sheriff Arnold Zwicke is requesting the replacement of 15 current cameras and the addition of 45 more, bringing the total to 104.

The city of Los Angeles is deploying a unique wireless surveillance network to keep watch over the Jordan Downs public-housing complex. Officials hope the system will improve safety for residents in one of the city's most dangerous crime-infested areas. The network consists of 10 wireless surveillance cameras and MOTOMESH, Motorola's wireless broadband network. MOTOMESH provides WiFi access to the public and will allow emergency responders to remain in constant communication, even while on the move. The inclusion of MOTOMESH also allows the system to expand far beyond Jordan Downs and over the entire city if officials decide to broaden the network.

Detectives leading the investigation into the death of three-year old Callum Bland in a house fire in Northamptonshire have appealed for neighbours with CCTV cameras on their homes to come
forward.

After what could have been considered a normal cigarette sting, a Peoria, IL convenience store owner has revealed surveillance and audio recordings of his interaction with a police officer that may turn out to be incriminating - of the police.

If you live in a city or large town, chances are you've seen their footage on the news or noticed them on the freeway - traffic surveillance cameras are commonplace now on major arteries. In the United States, nearly every state has a dedicated arm of their department of transportation which maintains and monitors surveillance cameras on major roads, interstates, freeways and highways.

The town of Kazan, like many other cities in Russia, has been an seat of trade, government and culture for hundreds of years. However, with modern crises like a dense-evergrowing population, street crime, vandalism and a steady traffic flow, maintaining security has proven to be a bit of a challenge.

Six men described as "Islamic radicals" were arrested Tuesday morning, accused of plotting to enter a military base and murder "as many soldiers as possible." The men, described as nationals of the former nation of Yugoslavia, were incriminated thanks to video footage taken of a planning meeting.

Ports have long been considered some of the weakest entry points into the United States, and one of the biggest challenges facing security officials in the fight against terrorism is port security. Millions of packages enter and leave the country each day through the 100+ ports in the US, which can make establishing security a challenge. The Port of Pittsburgh, the second busiest inland port in the country, has recently received a $2.6 million grant from the Department of Homeland Security to help secure the area.

One of the biggest concerns many people have when in the market for a video surveillance camera is "How do I know it'll work?" Their concerns aren't completely unfounded - surveillance cameras are great at identification and constant monitoring, but what happens when you have a true emergency on your hands? Security With Advanced Technology has introduced a system it hopes will demonstrate the potential that developing technology has for improving video surveillance.

In its short, 40-year lifespans, video surveillance technology has brought about many security revolutions. Stores have shifted from man powered security to exclusive camera systems. Cameras are used almost universally in places never thought possible - even 10 years ago. But the cultural implications to security cameras started in 1949, before the age of security cameras, with George Orwell's novel 1984.

One of the decisions that must be made when installing a video surveillance system is whether to keep the presence of security cameras relatively secret, or blatantly obvious. The thinking behind openly announcing the cameras' existence is that it will work as a stronger deterrent to crime. In other words, criminals are more likely to stop before they start if they know they're on camera. Such is the strategy in Onslow County, North Carolina, where the county's Superior Court building was recently equipped with security cameras that transmit feeds to flat-screen television monitors mounted on the wall for all to see. The Court Security Committee wanted a system that was overt rather than covert.

It's been a busy weekend for the Scotland Yard. Two gasoline-and-nail filled car bombs were discovered in Piccadilly Square, one of the busiest neighborhoods in central London. Thankfully the bombs were diffused before any damage was done, but officials are scrambling to find a solution, and some suspects, before the situation escalates.

Red light cameras have become a great fundraising tool for cities and municipalities everywhere. Tickets for light-runners help police forces focus on serious crimes and not minor traffic infractions. Australian police have taken this principle and expanded it to include freeways and byways in New South Wales - this time using cameras designed to capture license plate numbers.

The scene: an El Cheapo convenience store in Charleston, South Carolina. Off-duty police officer and mayoral candidate Omar Brown swings by El Cheapo to grab some snacks - a seemingly normal stop on a normal day off work. Brown never tasted the chemically sweetness of his snack cakes, however. Before he left, he had shot another man, Antonio Rivers, seven times. After the smoke cleared, controversy began to boil over. However, Brown has been cleared of any charges. Why? El Cheapo's comprehensive surveillance system.

Frank Waterhouse had a major victory against the City of Portland when he was acquitted of charges of criminal trespass and disorderly contact. Now, he and three others are suing the Portland Police department for damages, claiming the police violated their constitutional rights when they tried to film a property search in May 2006. See video from Waterhouse's camera inside....

Looking to secure high-crime areas and cut down on gun violence, the city of Philadelphia this week announced plans to dramatically expand its surveillance program. Currently Philly's high-tech crime-fighting program consists of 18 security cameras, but that number will increase substantially with the addition of 250 network cameras. When you consider that the 18-camera system reduced violent crime by 37% in the areas it monitored, it's easy to understand why the city is very enthusiastic about building up its surveillance network.

Surveillance video from a Clearwater, FL security camera could be the turning point in an investigation into a near-fatal accident involving Nick Bollea (son of wrestling legend Hulk Hogan).

The Pittsburgh Police Department is one of several police agencies utilizing cutting-edge technology to scan license plates from roving surveillance cameras on their cruisers. The city has been using the technology for a couple years now and it appears to be paying off. In the past two years, the cameras have helped Pittsburgh police successfully recover 180 stolen cars.

In the small town of Sergnano, Italy, which employs just two police offers to protect 3,000 inhabitants, an IP camera system has been deterring and catching criminals-- particularly vandals-- so successfully that the system paid for itself within a year of its implementation. The system covers an area of thirteen square kilometers, which made traditional analog CCTV impossibly expensive. Instead, IndigoVision, the company that installed the system, came up with a combined wired and wireless network for the cameras, facilitating cost-effective IP surveillance of remote areas.

In an effort to further reduce crime in the city of Tayside, the Scottish city has decided to outfit its police force with a tiny video surveillance camera mounted directly onto the uniform starting next June. Tayside has been at the forefront of surveillance technology before - it was the first Scottish town to add security cameras to patrol bikes in 2006.

It's a good thing that 27 year old Christopher Hague, of Staten Island NY, asked to see the surveillance video from the bar where he was arrested. Hague was taken into custody in 2007 when the NYPD tied him to a leather jacket containing narcotics.

Charlestown, Rhode Island's new police station was built with features designed to handle future surveillance upgrades not only for video security in and around the station, but also for monitoring the entire community. The station's IP surveillance system uses a mix of Videology and Axis network cameras, analog IR cameras run through video encoders, and Milestone XProtect video management software.

Usually we think of hidden cameras as being squirreld away in buttonholes and cleverly placed in newspapers and briefcases during high-stakes criminal investigations or by spies trying to crack open state secrets. Not so in Philadelphia. THe city has recently announced the introduction of mobile covert surveillance cameras to help control the city's rampant problems with illegal dumping.

Water bureau officials in Portland, OR renewed their belief in protecting their reservoirs last week when a twenty-something couple was discovered skinny-dipping in an inactive reservoir on Mt. Tabor in late June. Security video shows the couple climbing over the fence of Mt. Tabor's reservoir 6 and taking a late-night dip.

Ghent and Antwerp, long known as centers of fine arts and diamond trading, have new fineries to brag about. But, unlike a tennis bracelet or a painting by a Dutch master, the new IP video security systems and new courthouses in the two cities will provide priceless, customizable security.

The Los Angeles Police Department recently upgraded an existing video surveillance network that aims to deter crime in MacArthur Park. The improved park surveillance system features fixed security cameras, PTZ domes, and video management solutions from GE Security.

Law enforcement agencies across the U.S. are turning to video surveillance systems in police cars for increased security. The market for mobile video surveillance equipment for patrol cars is forecasted to grow at an average of 6.5 percent per year according to new reports. Already, over 40 percent of the 450,000 police cars in the U.S. already have digital video surveillance.

The River Vale Police Department in New Jersey recently installed a digital surveillance solution from JVC Professional Products. The new IP surveillance system replaces an outdated analog system with a mix of indoor and outdoor cameras watching over any areas at the police station where officers and visitors are including entrances, the dispatch center, the jail, and the parking lot.

In New York City, where millions of people ride the subway each day, video surveillance is playing a key role in keeping crime to a minimum. Currently there are 3100 cameras installed in New York's subway stations, and the city intends to add another 1000 cameras by the end of the year.

The city of Gilroy, California recently invested in a security camera system that they’re hoping will not only deter crime, but encourage shoppers and tourists to visit the new downtown by dispelling the impression that the city is too dangerous or dingy to visit. City officials and businesses are hoping the cameras show the city cares about downtown and the visitors’ safety.

A new study conducted at the University of Illinois at Chicago suggested that Chicago law enforcement surveillance cameras work better at reducing crime when clustered in high-crime areas versus spread across an entire city.