A lawsuit filed Friday against an Orlando-based credit union has prompted the credit union to require more specific information from police when they request access to its security camera surveillance videotapes.
Larry Tobin, president/CEO of Fairwinds FCU, said he has not yet received a copy of the lawsuit filed Friday by a member, Joyce Treutel, whose suit claims an invasion of privacy.
The credit union gave police separate photos of Treutel and a man using an ATM at a branch. The police gave local media the photos and incorrectly linked them as "persons of interest" in an investigation of an ATM card theft. The photo and incorrect information were broadcast on local news.
Treutel and the man were interrogated by the police but they had nothing to do with the theft.
"Police requested an ATM film for a specific period of time, but they gave us no other information," Tobin told News Now. "We provided it, and the police, based on that tape, posted two photos on the news and said that they were 'people of interest.'"
However, "the clock on the ATM was out of sync, and they were not the right people at the right time," he said. "Had the police given us more information, we could have pinpointed the correct people at the ATM," he said.
Finding the correct people in such a time frame is challenging, he said, adding that "three or four people can use an ATM within a one-minute period."
As a result of the error, "we are requiring police to provide details about what they are looking for" in addition to the time frame. The credit union likely could request a court order and is exploring its legal options, but "we'd certainly want to cooperate with authorities needing the information," he said.
The second person photographed did not sue, but claimed damages, which the credit union settled.
Larry Tobin, president/CEO of Fairwinds FCU, said he has not yet received a copy of the lawsuit filed Friday by a member, Joyce Treutel, whose suit claims an invasion of privacy.
The credit union gave police separate photos of Treutel and a man using an ATM at a branch. The police gave local media the photos and incorrectly linked them as "persons of interest" in an investigation of an ATM card theft. The photo and incorrect information were broadcast on local news.
Treutel and the man were interrogated by the police but they had nothing to do with the theft.
"Police requested an ATM film for a specific period of time, but they gave us no other information," Tobin told News Now. "We provided it, and the police, based on that tape, posted two photos on the news and said that they were 'people of interest.'"
However, "the clock on the ATM was out of sync, and they were not the right people at the right time," he said. "Had the police given us more information, we could have pinpointed the correct people at the ATM," he said.
Finding the correct people in such a time frame is challenging, he said, adding that "three or four people can use an ATM within a one-minute period."
As a result of the error, "we are requiring police to provide details about what they are looking for" in addition to the time frame. The credit union likely could request a court order and is exploring its legal options, but "we'd certainly want to cooperate with authorities needing the information," he said.
The second person photographed did not sue, but claimed damages, which the credit union settled.
..
1 comment:
Bill, thanks for the post and a reminder to us that synchronizing your network time is crucial. We implemented a Zurich NTP server some time ago. The vendor is Brilliant Technologies, http://brillianttelecom.com. Our CCTV surveillance DVR is driven by our NTP server...but, the time for our ATMs is driven by our ATM network provider. However, the time is in synch because both utilize NIST atomic clock servers - the Zurich server receives it's time via GPS satellites.
Post a Comment