(newscientist)
The spy approaches the target building under cover of darkness, taking a zigzag path to avoid well-lit areas and sentries. He selects a handy vantage point next to a dumpster, taking cover behind it when he hears the footsteps of an unseen guard. Once the coast is clear, he is on the move again - trundling along on four small wheels.

This is no human spy but a machine, a prototype in the emerging field of covert robotics. It was being put through its paces at a demonstration late last year by Lockheed Martin's Advanced Technology Laboratories at Cherry Hill, New Jersey. The company wants to design autonomous robots that can operate around humans without being detected...
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(ottawacitizen)
Canadian defence researchers are investigating how brain signals might distinguish hostile intent from everyday emotions such as anger and fear.

Though there is still much to learn, the goal is to push biometric science beyond identification techniques to a new frontier where covert security technology would secretly scan peoples’ minds to determine whether they harbour malicious intent...
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(techdirt)
The chief of police of the greater Rotterdam area has called for the creation of a DNA-database for all 16.6 million Dutch citizens. There is already a DNA-database in existence, but it only contains the DNA of 11,000 people since the policy is to only take DNA from people sentenced to prison for at least four years.

According to the chief of police the privacy of civilians is not as important as tracking down criminals, stating that society is "too careful" and that "if you want to make the world safer, there's a price to pay." In a statement released later he added that safety is partly paid for by reducing privacy...
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(scmp.com)
Talk about Big Brother! Every Beijing mobile phone user will be tracked through the use of the latest global positioning technology, the municipal government announced on Tuesday.

The project, called the Information Platform of Real-time Citizen Movement, aims to watch over more than 20 million people in Beijing 24 hours a day, local media said yesterday. Wherever you are - whether in the bathroom, on the subway or in Tiananmen Square - the government will know.

Wireless communication experts said the system would be particularly useful not only for following the whereabouts of individuals but also in detecting any unusual gathering of a large number of people.

It is unknown whether the government launched the project to prevent a "jasmine revolution" or other social unrest, but with the help of supercomputers, officials will know where the next gathering spot is before protesters get there...
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