CameraSpotter

The Start Making Sense project (2025–2027) by the Leiden-Delft-Erasmus Centre for BOLD Cities examines the presence and use of surveillance cameras in the public domain, as subjects of democratic decision-making and public debate, rather than as neutral or inevitable tools. While it is often assumed that cities have a camera technology register for public use in place, the reality is very different. There are hardly any up-to-date registers, let alone ones that are public and that specify where and why cameras owned by whom are used. Moreover, many smart city surveillance camera’s operate either invisibly or "hide in plain sight", blending into the fabric of everyday urban life and thus giving little reason for reflection or contestation. On top of this, government transparency regarding the presence, function, and implications of these camera’s, the data they generate, and how they use, implement and distribute it, is largely lacking. Regulatory shortcomings, technical barriers, limited political and societal urgency, and siloed governance structures further hinder public insight and collaborative responses.

This means that many questions remain unasked, let alone answered. For example, what problems are these cameras solving? Which new problems do they create? Who has (not) given permission to use this technology? Who owns the data? How do local government agencies or the police use the data to make (real-time) decisions and interventions? Is camera data linked to other types of data? Who benefits from this technology? Who might be (further) harmed or repressed by these cameras? How and where can people object to this technology being used on them? And what are the alternatives?

As an intervention, the aim of this app is to create a public camera register for and by the people of Rotterdam. Based on citizen science, this initiative maps where, why, and by whom cameras are used. By doing so, we are fostering transparency, awareness, and civic dialogue and debate about surveillance.

We focus on Rotterdam, because on the one hand it is known for its strong security focus (and hence political love for surveillance camera’s), and on the other hand it is the only major Dutch city without even a first attempt for a public camera register. This makes it an urgent and fitting location to explore how surveillance technologies can be made visible, contestable, and democratically accountable.

The CameraSpotter App is running on the SPOTTERON Citizen Science Platform at www.spotteron.net