Public Security and Technology Discussion

In this meeting, organized between CAF and the OAS Department of Public Security, experiences and information will be exchanged regarding the use of video surveillance and crime geo-referencing systems as key elements in improving security for the cities in our region. 

Today, video surveillance systems and crime and violence mapping have become key prevention, deterrence, control and investigation tools, as well as ways to improve the population’s sense of security.

The use of cameras and crime mapping, as well as the analyses derived from them, result in not only the question of recruitment and training of teams formed for such purposes, but also issues relating to storage and protection of the images and data, the right to privacy, as well as the ability to measure their effectiveness and impact.

As part of this new reality, local governments, watchdog groups, police institutions, and crime and violence analysis centers/units emerge as key players in diagnosing problems, generating evidence to guide intervention design and decision-making, as well as monitoring security trends.

Technologies are a means, never an end. Their incorporation into security policies has brought a number of challenges along with it. Their use must be designed rationally, as a result of diagnoses based on information and knowledge, with clear objectives, and respecting individual rights.

Beginning with the presentation of three local experiences, this conversation will seek to identify and understand some of the advantages and challenges with video surveillance systems and geospatial analysis, while attempting to dismiss a few myths, in addition to systematizing some lessons learned from the use of both of these tools.

Date: Tuesday, August 3, 2021

Time: 3 p.m. (Washington D.C.) - 4 p.m. (Buenos Aires)

The event will be broadcast on the same website and will feature simultaneous Spanish-Portuguese translation