Cameras are ubiquitous today, and, from a technology perspective, the revolution is just beginning. Video cameras are becoming smaller and cheaper while the Internet is enabling unlimited live webcasting. Web camera usage has grown from one in 1991 to hundreds in the mid-1990s to hundreds of thousands today. Video cameras the size of postage stamps can be procured for under $100, and will certainly become even smaller and cheaper.

To many, this is good news. Public webcams enable remote users to see what they would otherwise need to visit, and empower local subjects to have a voice and a face to the outside world. Private webcams empower friends and family to see each other remotely, and to check up on the safety of their homes and their loved ones.