"AI, drones and 4K cameras: New tech boosts security systems in Japan"

Photo and story from The Japan Times, 12/20/2020.

An increasing variety of technologies such as artificial intelligence, drones and high-quality 4K video cameras is being introduced in the field of security amid a serious shortage of personnel in the field.

A virtual “AI guard” developed by major Japanese security firm Secom Co. was tested at Ogikubo Hospital in Tokyo in late October. An animated character displayed on an electric panel at the hospital entrance takes visitors’ temperatures and then welcomes those without fevers into the facility.

The character has been programmed to respond verbally to basic inquiries and can tell visitors where the bathrooms are located and what time their buses will arrive. It is also able to make eye contact with visitors and lean down when approached by children or people in wheelchairs.

A human guard is on standby at a separate location to monitor footage sent by the system’s camera and rush to the scene to respond to any trouble.

The hospital stations two to three employees at the facility’s entrance to conduct mandatory temperature checks and ensure visitors are wearing masks to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.

After observing the system in action, the hospital’s administrative director, Hayato Kawamura, said, “We may be able to move at least one employee to take care of other work.”

Another major security firm, Sohgo Security Services Co., known as Alsok, has been considering adopting an AI system to identify potential shoplifters by analyzing suspicious behavior in security camera footage.

The system can also be used to notify security guards of potential health emergencies by alerting them if someone falls over. Guards can then rush to the scene with an automated external defibrillator (AED).

The security firm has also been setting up high-quality 4K cameras at places including Tokyo Skytree to test their ability to monitor the surrounding environment.

It is hoped the high-tech cameras with AI image recognition technology will be able to detect smoke rising from fires in distant areas as well as reckless drivers on the roads.

Meanwhile, a prison in Yamaguchi Prefecture has been utilizing drones equipped with cameras from Secom to patrol the premises, using GPS to fly designated routes.

Alsok is also testing drones that utilize AI cameras to avoid obstacles when flying in indoor areas that aren’t friendly to the use of GPS.

“4K, AI and 5G will become the three sacred treasures of security from now on,” said an official of Alsok, referring to the three ancient treasures of the Japanese imperial regalia. The official said 4K would serve as the eyes, AI as the brains, and 5G as the nerves.

Source: https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2020/12/20/national/ai-drones-cameras-security-systems-japan/

Another bad idea...

"Surveillance cameras to be installed in every subway car in Tokyo"

From Japan Today, 3/15/17.

Surveillance cameras will be installed in each of the roughly 3,800 subway cars in Tokyo, their operators said Tuesday, part of an effort to improve public safety ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.

Starting in 2018 or 2019, Tokyo Metro Co will begin installing a camera above every door of each subway car, while Toei Subway will install several cameras on the ceiling of every car over the period of just under 10 years from next August.

All video footage will be saved to hard disk drives and kept for around one week, and only a limited number of employees will have access to it, according to Tokyo Metro and Toei Subway, which is managed by the Tokyo metropolitan government’s Bureau of Transportation.

Tokyo Metro will start fitting cars on the Marunouchi and Hibiya lines with security cameras first.

Cars on the Tokaido, Sanyo and Hokuriku shinkansen bullet train lines have already been fitted with security cameras. Tokyu Corp, which operates railways in the Tokyo area, plans to follow suit by 2020.

Source: https://www.japantoday.com/category/crime/view/surveillance-cameras-to-be-installed-in-every-subway-car-in-tokyo

"Security camera footage helps spot suspects in over 10,000 crimes"

From Japan Today, 1/20/17:

Japanese police used footage from surveillance or dashboard cameras to identify suspects in more than 10,000 criminal cases last year, provisional police data showed Thursday.

The number of suspected violations of the Penal Code that came to police attention in 2016 fell below 1 million for the first time in postwar Japan, the National Police Agency also said, partially crediting security cameras with the decrease.

But there are persistent public concerns about overreliance on such cameras, as there have been cases in which innocent people were wrongly accused because police neglected other investigative work.

There are also fears about invasion of privacy. With more surveillance cameras expected to be installed in the coming years, privacy advocates are calling for judicious use of the devices.

According to the agency, the number of criminal cases built by the police last year totaled 22,318. Of those, 5.9%, or 12,994, involved footage from security or dashboard cameras in positively identifying suspects.

Such footage has now become “indispensable in investigations,” a senior agency official said, with data showing footage from such cameras has proven effective, mainly in uncovering street crimes.

By crime category, snatch-and-run offenses accounted for the most, 20.4% of the criminal cases in which security or dashboard camera footage proved decisive in identifying suspects, followed by pick pocketing at 12.3%, burglary at 10.8%, and indecent assaults at 10.3%.

As of last March, 1,530 security cameras had been installed by police across the country. Numerous security cameras have also been installed by private firms and individuals.

The data also showed that the number of suspected criminal cases that came to police attention in 2016 was 996,204, down 9.4% from a year earlier, and slipping below 1 million for the first time in postwar history. The number of such cases per 1,000 people fell to 7.8, a fresh postwar low.

Among the crimes, the number of attempted murder and murder cases totaled 896, down by 37 from the previous year and the lowest since the end of World War II.

Source: https://www.japantoday.com/category/crime/view/security-camera-footage-helps-spot-suspects-in-over-10000-crimes

"Police up surveillance against Peeping Toms among Kyoto’s camera-toting tourists"

From The Japan Times, 10/17/16.

Police are ramping up their vigilance at train stations, temples and shrines amid an increasing presence of alleged Peeping Toms in Kyoto’s major tourist areas.

Due to the compactness of image-recording devices, peeping techniques have become far more stealthy, and victims aren’t even aware they are targets.

Kyoto is also a city full of camera-toting tourists, making it hard to determine who might be a Peeping Tom.

In the latest case, a 55-year-old male high school teacher of Osaka was caught red-handed Sunday at the renowned Kiyomizu Temple after he allegedly took a photo up the skirt of a female college student, Kyodo News reported.

The 18-year-old victim was sitting on steep stone steps within the temple compound. Suspect Yoshikazu Tamura reportedly told police he was “disguising himself as a tourist taking photos of the scenery.”

The incident was discovered by staff of TV station Tokyo Broadcasting System who were reporting on Peeping Tom incidents in Kyoto.

In addition to major tourist sites, Kyoto Station, the gateway to the ancient capital, has also experienced a surge in the number of voyeurs.

According to a report by the Iza News website, some internet users call the station a major panchira spot, meaning “that’s where you can get a glimpse of panties.”

The report quoted the Kyoto police as saying the number of peeping incidents in the first half of this year has already exceeded the total of last year.

Plainclothes police are increasing vigilance near escalators and stairs, the report said.

Source: http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/10/17/national/crime-legal/police-surveillance-peeping-toms-among-kyotos-camera-toting-tourists/

"Complaint filed against police in Oita over hidden cameras"

From Japan Today, 8/13/16.

The administrator of a building used by opposition party supporters and a labor union chapter filed a complaint against the Oita prefectural police on Friday for trespassing and secretly installing cameras on the premises in June.

The police vowed to “thoroughly investigate” the incident, which took place around the time official campaigning for the House of Councillors election got under way.

Last week, they admitted that on June 18 two of their officers had installed two cameras in the grounds of the building in Beppu city in Oita Prefecture, southwestern Japan, without the permission, for the purpose of monitoring the actions of certain individuals.

The police have yet to reveal why they felt it necessary to install the cameras, which were in place through June 24, and who they were monitoring.

The building is home to a support group for the Social Democratic Party, a small opposition party, and a regional body linked to the Oita chapter of the Japanese Trade Union Confederation, known as Rengo.

The cameras were set up at two different locations—one covering the building’s entrance and another monitoring the parking lot, local labor union members said. The cameras were discovered after official campaigning for the upper house election began on June 22.

“We want the prefectural police to explain the purpose of their probe,” said Kenji Ishimoto, secretary general of the Oita labor union branch.

According to the union members, the cameras captured “images of an unspecified number of people entering and leaving the building,” a move they said constitutes a “violation of privacy.”

So far, police have said two male officers from their criminal affairs section installed the cameras on the night of June 18, but said the pair did not think the outdoor areas where they installed the cameras were privately owned.

The police acknowledged it was inappropriate to enter the premises without permission and install the cameras. They have apologized to those affected, but declined to say whether their surveillance activities were linked to the election.

Source: http://www.japantoday.com/category/crime/view/complaint-filed-against-police-in-oita-over-hidden-cameras

"Keio train equipped with antigroping cameras"

From today's Japan Today:

Keio Electric Railway Co on Monday introduced surveillance cameras in one of its trains in an attempt to combat commuter groping. According to Keio, which operates trains linking Shinjuku with the western Tokyo suburb of Hachioji, four cameras were put in the ceiling of one of the 10-car trains on the Keio Line.

The locations of the cameras, which are in car No. 6, were decided based on reports about gropings blamed on “chikan” (perverts), Keio said. The railway plans to install surveillance cameras on another train this month, it said.

The Metropolitan Police Department said 86 known groping cases were reported on the Keio Line last year, making it the worst railway for riders.

Keio is the second railway to adopt onboard cameras. East Japan Railway started using them on the JR Saikyo Line in December 2009, according to the transport ministry.

The cameras record images while the train is in operation, Keio said, adding they could be handed to police as evidence.

“We have decided to introduce surveillance cameras based on a police request,” a Keio spokesman said. 

“But we will carefully consider how we should expand surveillance because privacy issues are involved here.”

Link: http://www.japantoday.com/category/crime/view/keio-trains-equipped-with-antigroping-cameras

"Monitoring cameras to be removed from post offices at Y3.2 bil cost"

From today's Japan Today:

Japan Post Holdings Co plans to remove monitoring cameras from about 18,000 post offices nationwide at the cost of 3.2 billion yen in response to criticism that they are "undercutting" postal staffers’ working morale, a government paper showed Friday. The paper was a written reply to House of Representatives lawmaker Mito Kakizawa of Your Party, who questioned the appropriateness of the removal plan.

The monitoring cameras have been installed in stages since April 2007 by Japan Post Corp, the predecessor of Japan Post, prior to the 10-year privatization program that got under way in the fall of the year. The cameras were part of the 70 billion yen crime countermeasures enhancement program.

In the paper, the government says the use of the cameras "has led to monitoring working behaviors excessively and has caused various negative effects, such as reducing workers’ morale."

The removal decision has been made by the management of Japan Post Holdings, the government said in the paper.

Postmasters and other postal workers have long balked at the use of monitoring cameras, saying Japan Post management "is keeping tabs on postmasters’ behavior."

Read the story and reader comments:
http://www.japantoday.com/category/national/view/monitoring-cameras-to-be-removed-from-post-offices-at-y32-bil-cost

"Cop caught taking up-skirt videos during anti-pervert campaign"

From Japan Today, 10/27/09: (Amusing considering the last post...)

Police said Monday that a Tokyo police sergeant will be prosecuted under a prefectural nuisance prevention ordinance after he was caught using his cell phone camera to take up-skirt videos with his mobile phone camera on the Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line on Sept 18.

The incident took place right in the middle of an anti-“chikan” (pervert) campaign being conducted by the Tokyo Metropolitan Police to stamp out groping on trains.

The offense was noticed by another police officer who was on the same train. Police said that the sergeant broke his cell phone in half, destroying the evidence, after he was reprimanded by the officer.

According to authorities, the sergeant, who is in his 50s and served in Tsukiji’s organized crime division, resigned from his post and apologized, admitting to the charges and saying that he had committed the same act several times in the past.

For the story and reader comments:
http://www.japantoday.com/category/crime/view/cop-caught-taking-up-skirt-videos-during-anti-pervert-month

"Police to request installation of security cameras on trains"

From Japan Today, 10/24/09:

Police decided Friday to request that 16 train operators in the capital region install security cameras on trains as measure to prevent groping and provide investigators with hard evidence of the crime often believed to result in wrongful convictions.

The Metropolitan Police Department in Tokyo along with the Chiba, Saitama and Kanagawa prefectural police will convey the request to East Japan Railway Co. and 15 other train operators on Monday at the Tokyo police headquarters, the police said.

The National Police Agency plans to set up a study group in fiscal 2010 on introducing security cameras on trains as some have raised questions about the idea in relation to cost and privacy concerns, but the four local police headquarters decided to move ahead, saying they hope the request to serve as a ‘‘catalyst’’ for a debate on the issue.

Police expect high-resolution cameras to be installed on the ceilings of train carriages, which they say may not be able to capture a groper’s hand movements but could provide information on who stood where inside the train when molestation occurred. They also believe the cameras would serve to deter crime, they said.

Read the whole story:
http://www.japantoday.com/category/crime/view/police-to-request-installation-of-security-cameras-on-trains

Up-Skirts and Security Cameras: A Whole Lot of Picture-Taking Going On...

From Today's Japan Today:

Truck driver arrested for taking photos up skirts of school girls

Police on Thursday arrested a truck driver for violation of the prefectural nuisance prevention laws after he was caught taking photos up two high school girls’ skirts with his mobile phone camera. According to police, Ryuichiro Hayashi, 25, a resident of Shimane Prefecture, admitted to the charge. He was quoted as saying: “I got excited when I saw the girls and couldn’t resist taking photos.”

Hayashi is accused of taking photos up the skirts of two third-year high school students at a convenience store in the town of Omachi at around 8 a.m. on Thursday. A store clerk thought Hayashi’s behavior was suspicious, and after he left the store, the clerk and store owner checked the security cameras and saw Hayashi snapping photos. They then called the local police.

Hayashi was on his way to Nagasaki Prefecture. When police arrived, he was sitting in his truck in the parking lot of the convenience store.

See the story and reader comments:
http://www.japantoday.com/category/crime/view/truck-driver-arrested-for-taking-photos-up-skirts-of-school-girls

"Security cameras on trains being considered to reduce groping"

From today's Japan Today:

The National Police Agency plans to consider ways to reduce the occurrence of groping on trains, such as installing security cameras inside carriages, after a recent spate of acquittals in groping cases has raised questions about how to investigate them, agency officials said Monday.

A study group to be set up in fiscal 2010 with railway operators and outside experts will discuss the matter, the officials said, but whether the plan to install cameras will be put into place remains to be seen as the discussions will be held under a new administration led by the Democratic Party of Japan.

In its policy package released in July, the DPJ, which won a landslide in Sunday’s general election, raised concerns about the "harmful effects of an unlimited expansion of police authority, such as the abuse of investigative authority and the invasion of privacy."

It also vowed to "firmly lay down with human rights in mind the rules of administration when new investigative techniques are to be used."

Read the whole story:
http://www.japantoday.com/category/crime/view/security-cameras-on-trains-being-considered-to-reduce-groping

"Security cameras to be installed in 15 residential areas in Japan "

More interesting stuff from Japan Today:

Police will install a network of security cameras at 15 residential areas in 14 out of the country’s 47 prefectures as part of nationwide crime-prevention efforts, the National Police Agency said Thursday. The police will entrust volunteer groups of residents to operate and manage shooting equipment and image data, agency officials said. The police plan to launch the first such residential network in Japan around January next year, they said. Currently the police have 363 security cameras in operation at bustling shopping and entertainment urban districts across the country. It will also be the first time for the police to entrust such management duties to residents groups.

The National Police Agency, coordinator of the nation’s prefectural police forces, said the police will discuss the details of operating the network with volunteer groups. The police ‘‘will help residents to secure safety by themselves,’’ one agency official said. The police agency has already earmarked 597 million yen in the government’s supplementary budget for the installation of the security camera network and for the consultations with residents groups. According to the police agency’s plan, a set of 25 cameras each will be installed mainly on streets used by children going to school. The 15 locations include those in such prefectural capitals as Otsu, Okayama, Hiroshima, Tokushima and Fukuoka. The 10 other areas are in Higashimatsushima, Miyagi Prefecture; Oyama, Tochigi Prefecture; Toda, Saitama Prefecture; Higashiyamato and Musashimurayama, both suburban Tokyo; Fujieda, Shizuoka Prefecture; Neyagawa, Osaka Prefecture; Himeji, Hyogo Prefecture; Iwade, Wakayama Prefecture; and Amami, Kagoshima Prefecture. However, no residents groups have so far been picked to take charge of the security network in some of the 15 places. Some citizens groups are critical of the plan, saying that the government intends to strengthen surveillance on residents. The police have told residents groups that they will put up notices that indicate the locations of security cameras. They have also pledged to use data collected only for the investigation of crimes and that they will help protect citizens’ privacy. Under the plan, video monitors and recorders will be installed in non-police facilities, such as community centers, and residents groups will check screens when children are walking to and from school. Yasuhiko Tajima, professor of journalism at Sophia University who heads a citizens group against surveillance society, accuses the government of trying to have residents keep watch on each other through the planned installation of security cameras. The Musashimurayama municipal government in western Tokyo said a city official was called in to a nearby police station and was asked to join the security camera network plan on June 11. The city government said it has yet to decide on the location for the camera installation or on a residents group which will operate and manage the security camera network.

It seems problematic that the police/government to surveillance images, but now community groups? How will they be able to ensure privacy if such monitoring stations are located at community centers? Stay tuned to this one...