The debate between Security and Freedom still raises an important issue today. Once known the theoretical positions of Hobbes y Locke , we see that those concepts become blurred in a more and more controlled society where information is collected and saved. Despite the fact that freedom is a foundation of modern democracies, we can admit that the measures of controlling are increasing, reducing individual liberty for the sake of protecting democracy and achieving collective security.

At many times, citizens themselves ask for those security measures, expecting protection against a physical or dishonoring threat, or just as a preventive method. However, the presence of security measures around us, apart from deterring the villain, can provoke fear and generate a permanent state of alert against danger.

So, is it possible that the abundance of security measures often causes insecurity and fear as side effect? Interestingly, it is easier to obtain bigger control and make those measures accepted, by utilizing the fear from controlled people. Nevertheless, the insecurity and fear in the big cities will be increased in degrees and aspects, and moreover because of the social and economic inequalities. Probably it would be more productive in the long run to count on methods that would narrow these differences instead of separating them.

Another important aspect is to value the new way of control that has been developed thanks to the new technologies, and how it can affect our behavior in public space. Today, we have cameras with face recognition features, cameras that can see through inside our pockets, or even more intelligent cameras programmed to detect behavior patterns (like the Cromatic Intelligent System from London Underground). Those measures can often be prejudiced against someone, given that the system is conditioned by our physical aspect and moving pattern.

Now more than ever, our behavior is controlled before the presence of a machine. In most cases, the work of controlling, when processing a lot of data, is carried out by machines guided by innovative sensors and software and does not need anybody's presence to be operated. This new technology can detect people who don't correspond to the parameters of a normal behavior, then inform the watchman to determine the importance of what was detected. To be observed obviously changes the way people behave, but can it change who they really are or do people just pretend? Or, do people act naturally because security measures are already part of our daily life? Possibly, without us realizing it, a pattern of citizen conduct is about to be generated. The decision on how we want to be is in our hands.

The debate continues...