Britain has launched a program to fingerprint speeders when they are pulled over. When the driver's fingerprint is scanned electronically, it will be electronically compared to the database of crime suspects. Cheery little bit of Big Brotherism, isn't it?
Motorists pulled over by police face the threat of being fingerprinted from today – further inflaming fears over the growth of the Big Brother culture.
They will be asked to use a hand-held fingerprint reader which will check their identity against the 6.5million recorded prints of crime suspects.
Although the scheme, to be tried out by ten police forces, will be voluntary at first, the Government has admitted it is considering making it compulsory.
It would work in the same way as motorists having to take a breath test to show whether they have been drinking.
Laws would be brought in which would mean criminal penalties for drivers who are stopped and who fail to let their fingerprints be checked.
The extension of fingerprinting to the roadside – at present such checks are made only on criminal suspects in police stations – comes amid growing concern at the spread of public surveillance.
Now, while they are zealously keeping an ever increasing eye on the citizens, trying mightily to catch them doing something wrong, they are less than stellar in actually preventing any embarrassing crimes. Like having the police pay records of 15,000 officers stolen.
A burglar has stolen bank account details of more than 15,000 Scotland Yard officers following a huge security blunder, it emerged last night.
Sensitive financial information about high-ranking officers, thought to include Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair, and anti-terrorist detectives were stored on three laptops stolen from the company responsible for the force's pay and pensions services.
Last night, a major security review was under way at Britain's biggest force amid fears the thief could steal vast sums of money from officers' accounts.
It is also feared the computer files – which includes National Insurance numbers – could be used by criminal gangs to create false identities.
The break-in, at the offices of software group LogicaCMG in Peckham, South-East London, is a huge embarrassment to Scotland Yard.
A senior Yard source said: "Heads should roll over this. At a time of unprecedented concerns over security, it is scandalous that a thief can steal such sensitive information."
Detectives are trying to establish whether the thief had deliberately targeted the offices.
Well, then. Carry on watching the generally law-abiding types. They are easier to control than real criminals.
