More Singaporeans Use Spy Cameras on Kids, Maids
June 7, 1999 - 0:0
SINGAPORE Watch out in Singapore, because Big Brother -- or your boss, or your parents -- might be watching your every move with tiny spy cameras hidden at home and at work, the Straits Times reported on Monday. Demand has soared for secret surveillance devices to watch over premises and spy on employees, as well as children and maids at home, the paper said.
It quoted one security company official as saying his firm had enjoyed a 300 percent jump in demand over the past year for the small security cameras that are often disguised as wall sockets or smoke detectors. A wide range of people in Singapore who want to be in control buy the devices, which cost about S$400-S$1,200 (US$230-US$690) each and can be ordered from abroad and through the Internet, it said.
Some people want to make sure that domestic maids -- thousands of whom are employed in Singapore -- are hard at work on household chores while their employers are at the office. Watch dealer Christy Tan, who has installed a camera at home, told the newspaper: "Once I saw my maid sitting on the couch watching television." "Cameras are a great help, especially when you are stuck in the office, not knowing what's happening at home," she was quoted as saying.
Private investigator Harmon Singh told the newspaper that parents also wanted to keep tabs on their children. "Some parents want to know what their children are doing when left alone in the house. Others want to know if their children are watching television or taking a swim when they are supposed to be studying," he was quoted as saying. "Some people just don't trust the friends their children bring into their homes," he added.
(Reuter)
It quoted one security company official as saying his firm had enjoyed a 300 percent jump in demand over the past year for the small security cameras that are often disguised as wall sockets or smoke detectors. A wide range of people in Singapore who want to be in control buy the devices, which cost about S$400-S$1,200 (US$230-US$690) each and can be ordered from abroad and through the Internet, it said.
Some people want to make sure that domestic maids -- thousands of whom are employed in Singapore -- are hard at work on household chores while their employers are at the office. Watch dealer Christy Tan, who has installed a camera at home, told the newspaper: "Once I saw my maid sitting on the couch watching television." "Cameras are a great help, especially when you are stuck in the office, not knowing what's happening at home," she was quoted as saying.
Private investigator Harmon Singh told the newspaper that parents also wanted to keep tabs on their children. "Some parents want to know what their children are doing when left alone in the house. Others want to know if their children are watching television or taking a swim when they are supposed to be studying," he was quoted as saying. "Some people just don't trust the friends their children bring into their homes," he added.
(Reuter)