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The Battalion
Page 3 • Tuesday, December 2,
Phone photography
Cellular phones with built-in cameras are causing privacy concerns
ByLiz Doup South
KRT CAMPUS
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - Nina Sanchez thought a guy in
tier class was cute and wanted her cousin to check him out. Small
roblem: Cousin is in New York. So Sanchez snapped his picture
nd sent it to her. And it took only a minute or two.
Sanchez, 20, of Pompano Beach, Fla., snapped the guy with a
picture phone - a cell phone that captures your image, which can
be sent to another picture phone or to a personal computer and
'fobodj pread by the Internet.
nlesswii This latest techno toy migfit be taking your picture right now,
the fid ven if you’re sweating at the gym, screaming at your kids or shar-
ng an intimate moment with your lover. These palm-sized phones
Afii re so unobtrusive you might not even know you’re being pho-
mdelauiE ^graphed. As a result, privacy questions are popping up, especially
the sijr iow, as picture phone prices drop and their popularity soars.
/ sayic ; “Like any technology, it can be used appropriately or inappropri-
tely,” said David Sobel, general counsel for the Electronic Privacy
nformation Center in Washington, D.C. “There’s a strong potential
for abuse, but we’ll have to see how people use it before making a
blanket judgment on whether this technology is good or bad.”
I That better not take too long. In the quick-changing techno
lorld, the next new thing is for sale before anyone can say
Cheese!” Just last week. Sprint Corp. announced it was adding a
V service for cell phones with real-time programming. Now
at’s entertainment. As for that picture phone: It’s touted as a
otential workhorse.
Imagine real-estate agents zapping photos to busy clients or
city inspectors instantly documenting dreary eyesores. Picture
store clerks snapping a robbery in progress or victims capturing
eir assailant - on camera.
The main reason people are grabbing up picture phones is pret-
r y much the same reason they picked up a Polaroid camera near-
a half-century ago: Instant picture, instant gratification.
“It’s just fun,” says Sanchez, who, incidentally, asked permis-
arete; si 0 n to take the young man’s photo. “I take pictures of something
every day.”
I But don’t think these phones are purely kids’ stuff. Some even
| ise them like regular cameras, to capture special people and spe-
infc ial moments.
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Proud papa Herbert Roach, 29, of Lauderhill, Fla., snaps 9-
nonth-old daughter Halle daily then sends the pictures to family
friends. But he’s creative with the camera, too. Early in the
football season. Roach, a high school coach, photographed play-
irs to pinpoint mistakes.
“A defensive back would say, 'I am on my toes,’ “ he says.
“And I’d say 'No, you’re
not.’ Then I’d take a pic
ture to.show him.”
In two important ways,
this techie toy differs
from many conventional
cameras: It’s far-reaching
and discreet. A picture
phone image, available
immediately, can be sent
anywhere, anytime via e-
mail or to another picture
phone user. If you’re so
inclined, you can also
print out a clear, clean
image.
“Most of us don’t walk
around with a camera, but
we do walk around with a
cell phone,” says David
Bentkowski, an Ohio
mayor who recently
introduced legislation to
ban picture phones in pri
vate areas such as bath
rooms in Seven Hills,
outside Cleveland.
“Suddenly, everybody
is exposed to potential
paparazzi,” he says. “And
you don’t even know they’re taking your picture.”
If you don’t know anyone with a picture phone now, just wait.
For the first time since their commercial introduction four years
ago, sales now outpace digital cameras.
Around the world, people snapped up 25 million in the first
half of this year - compared to 4 million for the same period
last year.
Like many digital gadgets, dropping prices helped fuel the
buying spree. The phones once cost about $400. Some cameras
are integrated into the phone; others are attachable.
As with regular wireless phones, users pay a monthly fee for
minutes. But they also pay for a visual package. Taking pictures
doesn’t ring up the bill, sending them does. Some users pay per
download, say 40 cents or so per photo.
Another package charges $15 monthly for sending unlimited
pictures. Some cameras make a clicking sound when you shoot,
but in a noisy, crowded world that subtle sound is no warning
shout. Some are silent, so you only see someone clutching a cell
Melissa Lyttle • KRT CAMPUS
Akhil Gupta takes a picture of himself wearing a shirt he is considering buying. Cellular phones with picture taking
features, such as the one above, are becoming increasingly common and are causing privacy concerns.
phone, a common sight.
As cameras grow more popular here, privacy experts expect to
see more problems.
At 31, Kathleen Hishmeh, a Boynton Beach, Fla., accountant
and picture phone owner, understands privacy concerns. But she
questions trying to regulate them. “You have cameras so small
that people don’t notice them either,” she says. “Anybody can use
those. So how can you regulate the phones?”
Even Bentkowski came to the same conclusion. The city coun
cil tabled his legislation but as the town’s newly elected mayor,
he’ll see that warning signs are posted in public buildings: Please,
be aware of camera phones.
At least one private company has gone further. All phones -
regular cell and picture phones - are banned everywhere but the
lobby at The Sports Club/LA, an .upscale gym with celebrity
clients in New York, Los Angeles and other cities. But for many
young fans, privacy problems can’t trump the phone’s fun factor.
Raised on reality TV, school surveillance cameras and dorm video
cams, the picture phone doesn’t seem invasive to them.
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