World Sousveillance Day
Encyclopedia
World Sousveillance Day (WSD) occurs on the busiest shopping day of the year, December 24. In part, it aims to raise awareness of the imbalance between surveillance and sousveillance as particularly exemplified in shopping malls where surveillance is ubiquitous whereas sousveillance is prohibited.
WSD began in Toronto, Canada in 1998, but has spread to the rest of Canada, as well as other countries, with large groups in Vancouver, New York, Boston, and throughout California, as well as Florida. Additionally there are WSD groups in Scotland, as well as throughout Japan.
Part of WSD's mission takes the form of action research, a form of ethnomethodological inquiry. Some WSD groups, especially the New York group, in which Dr. Stefanos Pantagis, a New York physician and geriatrician was an early leader, raise awareness of the use of sousveillance as a form of memory aid.
Past WSD activities have included:
Day. The choice for this day stems from the historical meaning of the celebration of Jesus Christ's birthday, and the reality of the census order by Herod. The idea of a census
touches upon the idea of each citizen accounted for and taxed. In contemporary society the idea of census is converging with the idea of surveillance
of consumer behavior. In fact, a one year economic cycle revolves around the gift buying and present giving for Christmas
that has become part of the Western culture. Increasingly the way we purchase things involves credit cards, which in turn form a system of merchant monitoring in marketing to consumers. Unfortunately, privacy has eroded as marketing
and advertising
has created a form of continuous subconscious
messages targeted at buyers via data from surveillance systems.
/ sousveillance
balance in check.
Boston, California, Florida, Japan, Toronto, UK, Vancouver, Scotland, and New York.
The New York WSD team also runs the sousveillance.org website.
WSD began in Toronto, Canada in 1998, but has spread to the rest of Canada, as well as other countries, with large groups in Vancouver, New York, Boston, and throughout California, as well as Florida. Additionally there are WSD groups in Scotland, as well as throughout Japan.
Part of WSD's mission takes the form of action research, a form of ethnomethodological inquiry. Some WSD groups, especially the New York group, in which Dr. Stefanos Pantagis, a New York physician and geriatrician was an early leader, raise awareness of the use of sousveillance as a form of memory aid.
Past WSD activities have included:
- WebRamps, a research project to assist wheelchair users and people confined to hospital beds in shopping through remote able-boded surrogates.
- Operation Python, an effort to eliminate or deter credit card skimming and similar fraud, by encouraging customers to document all credit card purchases.
Historical interpretations
December 24 has been designated as World SousveillanceSousveillance
Sousveillance refers to the recording of an activity by a participant in the activity typically by way of small wearable or portable personal technologies.Sousveillance has also been described as "inverse surveillance", i.e...
Day. The choice for this day stems from the historical meaning of the celebration of Jesus Christ's birthday, and the reality of the census order by Herod. The idea of a census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
touches upon the idea of each citizen accounted for and taxed. In contemporary society the idea of census is converging with the idea of surveillance
Surveillance
Surveillance is the monitoring of the behavior, activities, or other changing information, usually of people. It is sometimes done in a surreptitious manner...
of consumer behavior. In fact, a one year economic cycle revolves around the gift buying and present giving for Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
that has become part of the Western culture. Increasingly the way we purchase things involves credit cards, which in turn form a system of merchant monitoring in marketing to consumers. Unfortunately, privacy has eroded as marketing
Marketing
Marketing is the process used to determine what products or services may be of interest to customers, and the strategy to use in sales, communications and business development. It generates the strategy that underlies sales techniques, business communication, and business developments...
and advertising
Advertising
Advertising is a form of communication used to persuade an audience to take some action with respect to products, ideas, or services. Most commonly, the desired result is to drive consumer behavior with respect to a commercial offering, although political and ideological advertising is also common...
has created a form of continuous subconscious
Subconscious
The term subconscious is used in many different contexts and has no single or precise definition. This greatly limits its significance as a definition-bearing concept, and in consequence the word tends to be avoided in academic and scientific settings....
messages targeted at buyers via data from surveillance systems.
Inverse surveillance interpretation
A key aspect of World Sousveillance Day is the act of "Shooting Back" against those who are surveiling unknowing consumers. For example, by photographing everyone who handles our credit cards, we're collecting potential evidence that might be of later use to law enforcement and credit card manufacturers in the event of credit card abuse. This is just one of the reasons for promoting 2-way surveillance and keeping the surveillanceSurveillance
Surveillance is the monitoring of the behavior, activities, or other changing information, usually of people. It is sometimes done in a surreptitious manner...
/ sousveillance
Sousveillance
Sousveillance refers to the recording of an activity by a participant in the activity typically by way of small wearable or portable personal technologies.Sousveillance has also been described as "inverse surveillance", i.e...
balance in check.
WSD groups and participants
There are various WSD participant groups around the world. The main groups are located inBoston, California, Florida, Japan, Toronto, UK, Vancouver, Scotland, and New York.
The New York WSD team also runs the sousveillance.org website.