Gizmodo: traffic cameras

Brooklyn Couple Snags Nikon Traffic Cameras With Cherry Picker

Jack Loftus — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 10:00:00 EDT

Some people see those automated traffic light cameras and hate them for privacy reasons. Others, like this couple from Brooklyn we're about to tell you about, take a look and see nothing but dollar signs.

The thieving pair, Anthony Cintorrino and Tara Laburt, were the beneficiary of what those in the biz call an "inside job."

Cintorrino, a contractor who recently installed and maintained a number of the cameras, had intimate knowledge of where they were and how they could be taken down quickly and quietly. All he and Laburt needed was a cherry picker and some time, and the valuable Nikon cameras housed within were theirs for the taking. Sadly for we gadget geeks, no Nikon model number was given—anyone out there know which Nikon camera body/lens is best for snagging license plates at 50 feet? Update: It's a Nikon D2x, apparently. Thanks, snarky commenter!

In the end, the couple was nabbed by New York police, but not before they had stolen and resold $88,000 worth of hot goods with their cherry picker truck. Unfortunately for any New York drivers out there, everything was recovered, and the camera rigs were put back into place a mere 48 hours after the crimes were committed. [New York Post via Autoblog - Thanks for the pic, Derek]

Mini Coyote Saves Us from the Worst Orwellian Abomination Ever: Speedtrap Cameras

matt buchanan — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 11:45:50 EST

Of all the Big Brother things corporations, governments, and other nosy entities that want to examine all the minutiae of our daily lives looking for transgressions of stupid little rules, I feel like speedtrap cameras are the most egregious. Endemic in Europe, they're gaining a foothold in the US. They break the whole system that governs the way we drive on American highways, the fundamental fairness of the road, that unspoken agreement between poh-lice and people who drive: It's only speeding if a living, breathing cop spots you. And even then, they might just let you pass. The Mini Coyote from Novus can restore this balance.

It's a GPS device that sits on your dashboard and relays the position of speeding cameras in just three seconds, giving you enough time to slow down while remaining within the limits of the law (in France, at least). It relies on fellow freedom lovers to report the position of speed cameras, but so far it's been a success—27,000 cameras were reported by 50,000 drivers in September alone. And you know what? Despite British tightwads saying that it opens drivers to prosecution for "peverting the course of justice,” Novus has a real point in arguing that it improves safety in at least one way—it means fewer people slamming on their brakes as they spot a camera, preventing collisions.

I find the whole argument that it's unfair annoying. Red light cameras, I'm okay with. It's never, ever safe to run a red light. On the other hand, more speed, unencumbered, can actually mean fewer fatalities and accidents. And these things are no substitute for actual police officers who can make real decisions. Besides that, tech one-upmanship is the whole game: Cops get radar, drivers get radar detectors. They move to laser, detectors pick up laser. It's as American as apple pie, Cheetos and Mountain Dew. So the Mini Coyote can't get here fast enough. [Pocket Lint]

Sneaky UK Traffic Cameras Suffer the Wrath of MAD

Charlie White — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 17:20:00 EST

People just don't like being spied upon. If you live in the UK, you're certainly familiar with those autonomous traffic cameras lurking around every corner that catch you speeding or running traffic signals, and then tattle to the police, resulting in a traffic ticket in your mailbox. A group called MAD (Motorists Against Detection) has been smashing those boxes for the past seven years in retaliation. In fact, the guerilla group claims to have obliterated 1000 of the cameras, and have big plans to step up their attacks on the eavesdropping gadgets.

Traveling in the UK, we were appalled by such invasion of privacy, but the Brits seem to be getting used to it. But not the MAD group. They plan to increase their camera destruction activities this summer, vowing to take down every one of the things in the entire country. Drivers who are not actively slam-dunking the camera boxes will be encouraged to cover up their license plates on certain days, too, in a mass act of passive-aggressive civil disobedience. There's something sneaky about these cameras that we just don't like, and we wish these disobedient citizens well. Let's just hope nobody gets hurt. [Speedcam]