The Future of Surveillance

Today I read an article from the tech magazine Gizmodo that pointed out a new laser surveillance technology that "Will Instantly Know Everything About You From 164 Feet Away".

The surveillance system was developed in Montreal in 2009 by PhDs with specialties in lasers and fiber optics used to attempt to identify individual cancer cells in a real-time scan of a patient and to detecting trace amounts of harmful chemicals in sensitive manufacturing processes. Government officials saw the opportunity to utilize this same technology for surveillance.

Gizmodo reveals how the machine may work in real-life:

"[The Machine] fires a laser to provide molecular-level feedback at distances of up to 50 meters in just picoseconds. For all intents and purposes, that means instantly...The small, inconspicuous machine is attached to a computer running a program that will show the information in real time, from trace amounts of cocaine on your dollar bills to gunpowder residue on your shoes. Forget trying to sneak a bottle of water past security—they will be able to tell what you had for breakfast in an instant while you're walking down the hallway."

There are still a number of questions about this technology before it will be implemented. Questions like how the device and the data it collects can be used, where, by whom, and where information like this would be stored. The legal limits and requirement to use such a device still aren't clear either.