Conversations may be recorded both on the Oxford Tube bus service and in all Oxford taxis. Oxford City Council has ordered every licensed cab in Oxford to be equipped with CCTV equipment by April 2015. All conversations will be recorded once the key is turned in the ignition and will remain recording 30 minutes after the engine is turned off. The audio files will be kept for 28 days following the conversation.
CCTV equipment will not only be found in taxis: both Stagecoach’s Oxford Tube bus and the Oxford Bus Company buses use audio recording.
Big Brother Watch, a campaign group aiming to protect individual privacy and defend civil liberties, called the council’s decision “a staggering invasion of privacy, being done with no evidence, no consultation and a total disregard for civil liberties.”
Nick Pickles, director of Big Brother Watch, commented, “It is a clear breach of the guidance issued by the Information Commissioners Office (ICO), for the CCTV code of practice says that CCTV should not be used to record audio because it is highly intrusive.
‘However, they do believe that it should be allowed in certain circumstances, when there is a serious issue to warrant this intrusion of privacy. We do not think there is enough evidence to justify this and therefore believe that the council has made the wrong decision.”
Pickles also stressed the fact that many people are unaware of the proposals, saying, “There has been no public consultation; nobody knows what is going on. Buses have been using audio recording for a while now and nobody knew.”
He noted that there are no signs on the buses saying that audio recording is being used, and that the Oxford Bus Company does not mention it under the conditions on their website.
He also mentioned loss of data as a potential risk, saying, “Time and time again we have seen that confidential information has been lost, accessed by the wrong people or used in the wrong circumstances.”
Oxford City Council claimed that the decision is purely to do with safety, both on the part of drivers, as there have allegedly been incidents when taxi and bus drivers were assaulted by passengers, and on the part of customers, primarily concerning disputes over fares. Louisa Dean, a spokesman for the Oxford City Council, stated, “Risk of intrusion is acceptable compared to the public safety benefits.”
Many Oxford students are completely unaware of the use of audio recording on the Oxford Tube buses. Michael Connolly, a first year Chemist at St Anne’s, commented, “That’s shocking. I’ve used the Oxford Tube several times – I had no idea.”
Jasmine Krishnamurthy-Spencer, another first year at St Anne’s, said, “I understand why one would want surveillance in a taxi, when there are sometimes only two people present and seeing as there have been incidents. My main issue is that no one knows about this. Every bus using it should have a sign saying something alone the lines of: ‘For safety and security reasons we are recording you. We store this information securely. For more information contact us.”
‘I want to know what they are doing with all the recordings, they need to tell us that. It won’t stop me from using the Oxford Tube, might make me watch my mouth though.’
Big Brother Watch has complained to the ICO about the policy and has written to two Oxford MPs asking them to join them in opposing the scheme. A letter has also been sent to the Prime Minister’s office. Pickles hopes that if enough people are made aware of the situation the council will be forced to rethink their decision.
The Oxford Tube bus service declined to comment on the issue.
