CTOS 20XX
“enveloping those areas in a technological bubble so encompassing that it is impossible to commit any crime”
This was a recent quote from the ben and marc show (Great podcast btw.)
It’s a direct quote from the head sheriff for the Las Vegas Metro Area.
I think it says a lot about where cities and police departments around the country are headed. CTOS is a concept from WatchDogs, the idea of a fully smart/connected city, Where every detail is tracked and every operation can be controlled electronically. While dystopian to some and utopian to others (see the history of the word utopia), paints a very realistic picture for where this is headed.
If fiction is 20 years ahead of reality and China is 5 years ahead of the US, then we should be expecting this to play out very soon.
We have a crime problem in the US, compared to most G7 nations. A problems that are systemic and prolific. And in some ways truly American; We have the freedom to gain the tools to commit crime, and in some ways we also have the freedom to commit such crimes, Given we don’t get caught. And we are rapidly approaching a world where that may no longer be possible. If you can instantly respond to any criminal activity especially while it’s happening, the leverage criminals have is gone. It doesn’t matter if you shoot someone; if the police are 60 seconds aways. Or even watching you commit the crime live.
Stick over carrot
If a criminal is instantaneously apprehended, was there ever a criminal to begin with? What alpha exists for crime if you’re instantly caught?
If the second you pull out a firearm in any visible public area the police are already on their way, What chances do you have to be a career criminal? If you get hit with the stick hard and frequently enough, You have no chance but to obey; See Singapore. But when 50% of homicides go unsolved it becomes kind of hard to even punish the perpetrators involved.
The US has many issues, Education, Healthcare, Housing. All systemic to our crime issue. “if” we ever fix those issues is to be seen, What is much more likely is for us develop enveloping security in every aspect of our society. or so to say “Following the path of least resistance”. or to quote: “enveloping those areas in a technological bubble so encompassing that it is impossible to commit any crime”.
Police know where crime is happening, no data collection needed. They already know the 10% of landmass where 90% of crime takes place. It wouldn’t be very hard, or un-constitutional. To create a CTOS like system in this areas. With micro-controllers costing 10$ and cellular modems being 15$. Every step can be recorded for a price less than allowing criminal activity to prosper. We already have everyone’s location at all times thanks to the little bricks of glass we carry in our pockets. It’s only one warrant away from being accessed.
Not very hard to start correlating data after that.
Palantir for police
All tech startups pushing us closer to a CTOS future.
The only thing missing is a Palantir (or CTOS) like system to ingest and project all this data. (That’s being programmed as I type this.) Every Ring camera will soon have an AI watching 24/7 for any “suspicious activity”. Reporting anything and everything to an automated system that decides if it’s pertinent enough to respond to.
If the 70’s has the golden age of serial killers then the 20’s will have been the golden age for shootings, stabbings, rapes, and robberies.
Authors Note: To Be continued.