Oxford Town Centre - dataset

Transparency, accountability 🙈

The Oxford Town Centre dataset has several transparency limitations:

• Lack of consent. The dataset uses footage from a public surveillance camera, capturing images of pedestrians without their knowledge or consent. This raises significant ethical concerns regarding privacy and informed participation.

• Data collection. While it is known that the dataset consists of a 5-minute video with 7,500 annotated frames, the full extent of the data collection, curation, and annotation process is not clear.

• Subject demographics. There appears to be a lack of comprehensive information about the subjects' demographics, making it difficult to assess potential biases or representativeness of the data.

• Usage guidelines. There is a lack of clear guidelines or restrictions on how the dataset can be used, potentially leading to misuse or unethical applications of the surveillance footage.

• Data retention and access policies. Information about how long the data is retained, who has access to it, and how it is protected from unauthorised use is not readily apparent.

Risks, harms 🛑

The Oxford Town Centre dataset raises privacy concerns due to its collection of video footage of pedestrians in public spaces without consent, potentially enabling the tracking and analysis of individuals' movements and behaviours without their knowledge or permission. 

Investigations, assessments, audits 👁️

• Harvey, A., LaPlace, J. (2019). Exposing.ai