Motorists that were behind the wheel and used their smartphones to snap images of a massive crash can find themselves in hot water.
While there are times in which technology news reveals many ways in which to improve our lives and make things easier, a recent situation in the United Kingdom has caused four drivers to be prosecuted for having taken photographs of a freeway accident using their mobile phones.
The Gloucestershire Police said that the activity of snapping the photos caused dangerous driving situations.
The police stated that the drivers in this technology news who took the photos of the traffic accident were so focused on taking the pictures that other drivers were required to hit the brakes or take other evasive action to avoid crashing into them. The drivers, who should have been focused on making sure that they were proceeding safely past the area of the crash, instead chose to take out their mobile phones and try to either photograph or take video footage of an RV that had collided with the center barrier of the M5 freeway, near Michaelwood services.
A police officer reported in this technology news that there were dozens of motorists trying to take pictures.
The accident blocked the third lane of the freeway on the afternoon of July 28 and the many drivers who decided to focus on using their mobile devices to take pictures instead of concentrating on their own driving risked making the situation considerably worse. That said, among all of the motorists who failed to progress legally past the crash, only four were apprehended.
Those four will be prosecuted for having driven without due care and attention, or without consideration to the other road users. That said, there were eight other drivers who were identified in this technology news story, and who will be sent letters of warning with regards to the way that they were using their mobile devices while behind the wheel.
According to a technology news statement released by PC Shelley Holloway, “The actions of several motorists who drove through the scene showed no regard for their own or of other people’s safety, as they used their mobile phones to record or video the wreckage as they passed.”
A watchdog group has pointed out that wearables will need to adhere to the same regulations as other gadgets.
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) in the United Kingdom has now confirmed that the collection and use of personal data that is obtained through wearable technology devices is subject to the data protection laws that are in place in the country.
The watchdog has stated that everything from smartwatches to Google Glass will be required to comply.
All forms of wearable technology will need to adhere to the regulations as laid out in the Data Protection Act (DPA) in the United Kingdom, said the group in its recent announcement. It explained its statement within a blog post, where it specified that people who are using wearables on their own person and who are using the data collected for their own purposes are not likely to be in conflict with the rules in the DPA.
Wearable technology used for domestic and personal purposes is exempt from the DPA regulations.
Andrew Paterson, the senior technology from the ICO went on to explain that “if you were to one day decide that you’d like to start using this information for other purposes outside of your personal use, for example to support a local campaign or to start a business, then this exemption would no longer apply.”
Organizations who have been – or who intend to – use wearables for the collection and processing of personal information will nearly always need to have to look to the Act to ensure that they are in compliance. It means that they will need to ensure that they are processing the information that they have collected through the use of those devices is in compliance with the DPA.
Among the regulations outlined for the use of information gleaned through wearable technology use is that the individuals affected must be informed about the way in which their personal data is being collected, as well as how it is being used. It must be made certain that only the data that is adequate, relevant, and not excessive is taken, and that it is stored in a secure location from which it is deleted once there is no more requirement to use it, said Paterson’s post.
