The operator, Vumacam;
- does not collect personal data.
- does not sell personal data to third parties and does not intend to do so.
- anonymises all data and does not have any means to link footage to any individual’s personal data.
- built its platform based on international privacy standards that exceed POPI compliance.
- provides situational awareness to curb criminal activity and to assist in medical emergencies.
- operates in line with all current by-laws and only if the necessary permissions have been granted for all operations.
- does not spy on law-abiding citizens
Four key themes:
- Safety
- Transparency
- Technology
- Privacy
Enabling better public safety through a world-class technology platform
Purpose
Vumacam’s purpose is to contribute to the safety of all South African citizens and to help build an environment which enables economic growth, stability and prosperity.
Our initial rollout began where funding and fibre networks were available and we brought leading edge surveillance technology to the country to build on this infrastructure. Vumacam is directing expenditure into growing all our surveillance networks across the country – in both disadvantaged and affluent, urban, and suburban areas. We believe our networks will significantly impact crime levels and protect infrastructure, which will in turn create a safer society that benefits from greater economic growth and investment.
Technology
Vumacam builds intelligent technology solutions to support safety initiatives and partner with law enforcement to tackle SA’s crippling crime levels.
Secondary message: Our solutions have yielded significant successes in terms of arrests and demonstrable reductions in crime rates in the areas that use our technology. In the future, we will use data-led technology to help predict where crime will occur to move from reactive to proactive crime prevention.
Secondary message: Law enforcement agencies are under immense pressure and the resources needed to curb the high levels of crime afflicting South Africa simply don’t exist. Our cameras offer law enforcement the ability to respond to flagged incidents with precise geographical information, and reliable suspect descriptions. Where it is found that criminal activity has taken place, the relevant evidence so often lacking in ensuring a conviction is available.
Secondary message: Global shifts in technology and society are transforming our culture and environment. The 4th Industrial Revolution is fuelling exponential technologies that accelerate and transform every aspect of our lives. By using innovative intelligent technology solutions, we are able to manage the privacy of communities and protect them.
Contextual: During lockdown and the COVID-19 outbreak, Vumacam’s support is now more critical than ever to keep people and businesses safe.
Privacy
Privacy and data protection are fundamental to how Vumacam operates, and our state of the art systems ensure data and privacy is protected at all touchpoints.
Secondary message: Our technology and surveillance only captures public behaviour, and the privacy of individuals is therefore in no way impacted. Licence plates exist to make a vehicle publicly identifiable, and our systems flag only vehicles entered into law enforcement databases. All data captured is protected and stored in line with the requirements of POPIA and international best practices and is only ever provided to relevant law enforcement or security companies when a case number or court order is supplied.
Safety
Vumacam shows clearly demonstrable results in preventing crime. In the last x years Vumacam has assisted in x arrests, recovered over XX cars and saved over x lives.
Secondary message: In all areas in which Vumacams are installed, we see an instant and sustained decrease in criminal activity. This is because cameras ensure criminals are caught and they act as a deterrent to criminal behaviour taking place.
Secondary message: Vumacam surveys for criminal activity only in the public domain. Our systems do not capture, store or share any activity that is not public or criminal in nature. Data is anonymised, and can only be retrieved by designated and highly trained operatives at security companies or law enforcement with requisite/legal cause for doing so. Our systems cannot be used for racial profiling. We track all queries and maintain stringent records of footage requests.
Transparency
As with many technology providers that break new ground, we have proactively sought consent or guidance from relevant authorities prior to roll out and have operated within existing regulation. Where authorities determine that additional regulation or a change in regulation is required, we have at all times engaged with them to ensure compliance.