CTS

From TinWiki.org

Combat Zones That See, or CTS, is a surveillance program created by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). The program's design calls for the installation of a linked surveillance system, involving thousands of cameras, able to provide real-time reconaissance and always-on video support tailored for use in urban combat environments.[1] The camera feeds are monitored and maintained by an advanced tracking system designed for sorting detailed surveillance of vehicles and people.

The CTS project was first made known to the public in April of 2003, when it was announced that the system would be launched at Ft. Belvoir, an Army post in Virgina. Later that same year the system was installed, and afterwards little news about it has been released into the public sector.

1 Technology
2 Orwellian overtones
3 See also
4 Notes
5 External links
6 Relevant discussion threads

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Technology

The CTS program is a complex suite of security systems that work together to form one massive database, able to store images and video feeds for future analysis. The visual systems themselves can range from the most high-quality hardware developed for specific purposes, down to a standard department store variety machine.

The brain behind ATS is its highly advanced artificial intelligence (AI)[2] software. Developed specifically for CTS, the AI is programmed to utilize its available visual systems to track both vehicles and individual persons.

The AI is also equipped with pattern-analysis software,[3] which allows it to anticipate movement and trajectory of any objects currently being tracked. This enables it to recognize what a human might interpret as "suspicious behavior", such as a vehicle accident, a car suddenly speeding away, a person being mugged, and so on. The system will also be connected to law enforcement and federal databases, enabling it to capture and compare license plate numbers or faces and compare them against a watch list.[4] If a match is made or a response required, CTS can instantly relay the information to appropriate personnel, quickly summoning police, medical assistance, or other assistance as needed.

Given the highly automated nature of CTS, it both drastically reduces the manpower necessary to monitor secure areas while greatly enhancing their security capabilities.

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Orwellian overtones

The phrase "big brother is watching", coined from George Orwell's novel 1984, has been used for some time to describe the constant nosiness of government agencies, but it was always known that there were more citizens than there were agents of big brother. CTS has changed this in a way which many feel is a violation of privacy and civil rights on numerous levels.

Although DARPA maintains that the system is only for use in military applications, given the specific nature of the system and its obvious potential, it is doubtful that sales will be denied to other government or law enforcement agencies if and when such offers are made.

Another factor which leads many to suspect CTS has gone active is the lack of awareness about the project; since it went operational at Ft. Belvoir in 2003, the project headlines stopped flowing, and any post-testing information seems to have been cleansed from the internet. This has lead meany to believe that the project "went black", or continued without public knowledge.

The United Kingdom has developed similar technology. The Intelligent Pedestrian Surveillance System boasts automated computer monitoring of digital cameras at tube subway stops in London.

It remains to be officially discovered whether Combat Zones That See are currently watching the populace, but for the few concerned citizens in the know, there mere existence and initial rollout of the program is all but conclusive evidence that big brother is indeed watching.

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