The Irish Times Poll of the Day aims to get an outlook on readers’ opinions on current events.
Tuesday’s question: Do you think publishing CCTV images of people dumping rubbish is an invasion of privacy?
Today’s poll received 1,139 responses; 92 per cent of respondents answered “No”, that it was not an invasion of privacy, while 8 per cent voted “Yes”.
Last week, Dublin City Council erected a poster in a litter blackspot in the north inner city showing 12 people caught on CCTV dumping rubbish.
The faces are slightly blurred due to the quality of the CCTV footage, but they would be able to identify themselves, as most likely would their neighbours, the council said.
Within a day of the poster going up at Frankfort Cottages, near the Five Lamps, the street was clear of rubbish.
However, yesterday morning the Data Protection Commissioner contacted the council over its use of the images.
John McPartlan, public domain officer with the council, said he would be responding to the commissioner this week.
“We have to make a case that our use of the images is proportionate response to the issue, and our view is that it is, because illegal dumping leaves the city in a terrible mess,” he said.
The ‘Irish Times Poll of the Day’ was a self-selecting survey of readers of irishtimes.com which ran from 9.45am-2.30pm.