Thousands sign up doorbell cameras to solve crimes

Pamela Tickell
BBC News, North East and Cumbria
Getty Images / Catherine McQueen A black doorbell camera mounted on a stone wall which is out of focus. Getty Images / Catherine McQueen
More than 4,000 cameras are already registered across Cumbria

More than 4,000 households and businesses have registered their doorbell or CCTV cameras to help assist in police investigations.

Cumbria Police said when a crime takes place, it has a system in place to see if nearby footage has captured vital evidence.

However, the force stressed that signing up did not not mean officers had remote access to cameras and information would "only be used to request footage if an incident were to occur".

Officers are urging more people to sign up and help "significantly increase the speed of an investigation, as well as the likelihood of the offender being caught or vulnerable person safeguarded".

Footage and a person's camera information would not be subject to disclosure in a public data request, the force also said.

It added that only authorised police users had access to the camera map.

"You will be in control of your CCTV and doorbell cameras and of any footage you provide to the police," a spokesperson said.

There are also plans to enable businesses and other venues to allow officers direct access to their camera feeds during an emergency.

The project is part of the Connect Cumbria scheme and involves a device being plugged into the camera system.

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