Coming soon: "smart" cameras and citizens improving urban safety

"Safe cities": seen by some as increasing the security and resilience of cities, others see it as an instance of ICTs (Information and Communication Technologies) being used in the move towards the society of control. The term has sparked much debate. Still, through balanced policies, the "Safe City" could become a part of a comprehensive "smart city" approach. Citizen crowdsourcing (security by citizens) and video analytics-"situational analysis that involves identifying events, attributes or behavior patterns to improve the coordination of resources and reduce investigation time" (source: IBM)-ensure the protection of privacy, and guarantee its cost and performance. This article was written based on the research Augustin de la Ferrière carried out during his "Grande École" training at Télécom École de Management (Institut Mines Télécom)