Reports have surfaced about the New York Police Department (NYPD) making use of a new technology known as ‘X-Ray Vans’. The program is supposedly a secret and officials that are involved in the project are refusing to comment. The technology is referred to as ‘Z Backscatter Vans’ by local authorities.
The idea is to employ these vans in streets and residential communities. The vans will be slowed down and the scanning device will come in play, enabling the operators to be able to physically see inside passing cars and even homes that are in the device’s range. The scanner is able to detect signs of weapons, drugs and illegal objects that could warrant potential raid and subsequently an arrest. The technology imparts the ability to see through physical walls and enable Police to track movements through walls. The vans are reportedly military grade and the technology poses a health threat to the victims that are being scanned.
Then there’s also the financial aspect of these vans. It has been reported that a unit of Z Backscatter Vans costs somewhere between $729,000 and $825,000. The court hearing held in this regard has stated that these vans are only deployed within short miles of the 9/11 attack site in attempts of tackling terrorists.
The New York State Supreme Court Judge Doris Ling-Cohan has ruled that the department should give up any and all records pertaining to the Z Backscatter Vans’ actions. The Z Backscatter Vans are also being used by the US Customs and ensures that no vehicles carrying weapons, drugs and any other explosive devices makes its way across the border. Although we appreciate the protection that this approach imparts, we can’t turn a blind eye to the potential health risk and the invasion of privacy that this approach is causing.