Microsoft and the New York Police Department have joined together to develop a crime and counter-terrorism prevention system.

The system Domain Awareness System (DAS) will include smart cameras and license plate readers and will be able to relay information to the NYPD surrounding suspicious vehicles and packages. DAS will also include real time access to video feeds, records, and call logs.

New York city mayor Michael Bloomberg, said “we are finding new ways to leverage already existing cameras, crime data, and other tools to support the work of our investigators, making it easier for them to determine if a crime is part of an ongoing pattern, and will allow the NYPD to better deploy its officers".

The system has raised concern from privacy groups regarding the wide-sweeping nature of data collection by police and the involvement of a private corporation.