Blog post by Mike English of Lumina Group pondering the notion of being watched and followed. Have you ever been watched, how would you react if you discovered you were under surveillance?
Suffering my tedious journey down the M6 this week, I was contemplating what it would be like to be ‘watched’ or followed by covert surveillance experts… Have you ever been the subject of surveillance? Would you even know if you had?
If you did know, would you be looking over your shoulder, checking, rechecking and even taking a different route to your destination, be it walking, driving or on public transport. In such an industry, when subjects have let’s say, ‘rumbled the surveillance operatives’ some subjects have been known to perform for the cameras.
As experienced surveillance experts we have a duty to our clients to deliver accurate and reliable evidence without causing greater consternation to the subject. Of equal importance, it is also our responsibility to be as elusive as one can possibly be when conducting surveillance, including the intrusion of privacy of the subject
The clue is in the name ‘covert’ (“not openly acknowledged or displayed “) as says our friend Google!
Seeing our experienced operatives, it really is like they are invisible to the subject under surveillance, even as the phrase goes ‘in plain sight’. On a recent surveillance training exercise for our operatives and new recruits with a mock (random) subject, after following the subject around for quite some time, it was incredible to see just how up-close our operatives can get, even sharing the very same table in a café bar whilst obtaining audio and video.
The level of detail and covert nature of surveillance is astounding, the slightest detail can be crucial in evidence so nothing is left to chance nor guesswork. These operatives fully understand that any action, be it small or plainly obvious can be the compelling evidence a case has been struggling to find. Nothing is left to chance.
The surveillance industry (and it is an ‘industry’) here in the UK currently remains unregulated and unlicenced. This sadly leaves standards and productivity wide open. Historically, many cases of weak video surveillance, deliberate manipulation and more commonly, selective video frame editing to ‘flavour’ an outcome have been seen producing very believable evidence, yet highly unethical and clearly falsified data.
A great deal of preparation takes place here at Lumina in advance of any camera or audio work which follows, with much knowledge gained about the subject’s general whereabouts prior any surveillance taking place.
It is the role of the surveillance operative to always collect and collate pure factual video evidence. It’s quite a tricky task to produce continuous evidence when you think about your everyday lives and where you may need to be. Mobile, on foot, in or out of shops, work, hospitals, friends, public houses etc may be deemed normal routine by many perhaps stretching out the full day. Only highly, and correctly trained operatives can pull this off with continuous video and audio in close quarters without being noticed.
I also find it interesting that with the volume of exercises conducted nationwide each day, 7 days per week, that as passer-by I’ve never seen nor detected anyone conducting surveillance and likely never will.
So, on your way home tonight, on the bus, tram, train or in your car, you may well be in the unfortunate position of being watched. It’s easy for me to say that if surveillance is conducted as it should be, you will never, ever know (I am 100% confident in our team here at Lumina if it was our assignment!).
Covert Surveillance remains a crucial factor in the production of case evidence and is used in literally thousands of cases each year here in the UK. When conducted efficiently, ethically and producing the factual truths, such evidence can accelerate cases to settlement, saving time, costs, allowing lawyers to me more productive and reducing unnecessary anxiety of the claimant.
My pondering continues as I grind to another halt on the M6 Northbound, double checking my mirrors…
Lumina Surveillance Group are a trusted and highly experienced organisation operating in the covert surveillance and video evidence analysis arena’s with over thirty years hands-on experience. Lumina was born with a fresh approach from the bringing together of two successful specialist companies, combining expert skills and resources to deliver an unparallelled service to our clients. Instructed by both defendant and claimant law firms, insurers and self-insured organisations, Lumina’s standards, business protocols and highly experienced team enable Lumina to deliver the true picture every time. Contact: [email protected]