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Airline passenger conversations to be monitored under EU project
Airline passengers could have their conversations and movements monitored under a European Union project aimed at tackling terrorism.
Brussels is funding research at Reading University aimed at detecting suspicious behavior on board aircraft.
It uses a combination of cameras, microphones, explosives detectors and a sophisticated computer system which would give a pilot early warning of any danger.
But the work has alarmed civil liberties campaigners who fear the growth of the surveillance state.
At present intelligent CCTV systems which monitor and analyze passenger behavior using computer software are used in a number of airports across the world, including at Hong Kong and Washington DC. They are designed to pick up unusual or suspicious behavior, such as a bag being abandoned.
Under the new system, microphones would be installed and passenger conversations listened to for the first time. Suspect words and phrases would alert a monitoring system.