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The following BSI references relate to the work on this document:
Committee reference GW/1/10
Draft for comment 17/30345717 DC

Foreword

Publishing information

This British Standard is published by BSI Standards Limited, under licence from The British Standards Institution, and came into effect on 30 June 2017. It was prepared by Subcommittee GW/1/10, Video surveillance systems (VSS), under the authority of Technical Committee GW/1, Electronic security systems. A list of organizations represented on this committee can be obtained on request to its secretary.

Use of this document

As a code of practice, this British Standard takes the form of guidance and recommendations. It should not be quoted as if it were a specification and particular care should be taken to ensure that claims of compliance are not misleading.

Any user claiming compliance with this British Standard is expected to be able to justify any course of action that deviates from its recommendations.

Presentational conventions

The provisions of this standard are presented in roman (i.e. upright) type. Its recommendations are expressed in sentences in which the principal auxiliary verb is “should”.

Commentary, explanation and general informative material is presented in smaller italic type, and does not constitute a normative element.

The word “should” is used to express recommendations of this standard. The word “may” is used in the text to express permissibility, e.g. as an alternative to the primary recommendation of the clause. The word “can” is used to express possibility, e.g. a consequence of an action or an event.

Notes and commentaries are provided throughout the text of this standard. Notes give references and additional information that are important but do not form part of the recommendations. Commentaries give background information.

Where words have alternative spellings, the preferred spelling of the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary is used (e.g. “organization” rather than “organisation”).

Contractual and legal considerations

This publication does not purport to include all the necessary provisions of a contract. Users are responsible for its correct application.

Compliance with a British Standard cannot confer immunity from legal obligations.

Introduction

The proliferation and use of cameras to capture images and stream video footage continues to develop in both technical capability and in its attraction to the market. Every day, images are “captured” using a “camera” that can be shared on social media, make big news on television networks or be used as potential evidence to prove something has or hasn’t happened.

Technology has enabled CCTV to become a more personal feature of our everyday lives, most notably the use of mobile technology, such as phones and tablets, and more lately body worn video (BWV), which have cameras and audio as standard with the ability to upload video, images and audio (collectively referred to in this standard as “data”) either immediately or retrospectively to anywhere in the world. The consequences of this are widespread in terms of privacy and security.

The use of BWV clearly has its advantages in terms of providing the user with a sense of protection; a second pair of eyes and ears should something go wrong. It is, however, not without its challenges in terms of operational use, technical capability, security of data and privacy to those being recorded.

Legislation in the UK covers data protection and privacy, as well as the use of CCTV as evidence in both criminal and civil cases. Whilst technical standards and guidance exists, there are still many circumstances where extra guidance on the use, limitations and restrictions of CCTV is needed. The ICO has published a code of practice for CCTV (see In the picture: a data protection code of practice for surveillance cameras and personal information [1]) to promote good practice and attention is drawn to system owners' obligations under data protection law when processing personal data. This applies across all sectors in the UK.

With the complexities of CCTV, the government recognized the need to provide specific guidance for the use of surveillance cameras in public space and the Secretary of State issued the Surveillance Camera Code of Practice [2], which covers all forms of surveillance cameras including BWV.

This British Standard aims to support the work of the various public and private sector organizations to deliver a common framework on which BWV can be used appropriately and proportionately to ensure there is a balance between safety, security and the privacy of people being recorded. It provides recommendations that can be used consistently across multiple applications such as the police and criminal justice systems, parking and civil enforcement, lone workers and a common platform for integration into other technology and use.

1 Scope

This British Standard provides technical and operational recommendations for the deployment and use of Body Worn Video (BWV) used for the purposes of recording interactions between the wearer and other parties, or the environments in which the wearer finds themselves. This British Standard is applicable to both BWV users and system owners, as well as suppliers, taking into account how the visual/audio data is captured, viewed, stored and used securely.

NOTE Examples of where BWV might be used include emergency services, night‑time economy (e.g. licenced premises), taxi marshalling, warden schemes, security guarding, parking enforcement and door supervision.

2 Normative references

3 Terms and definitions

4 Planning and the operational requirements of BWV

4.1 General

4.2 Recommendations for the system owner

4.3 Deployment scenarios

5 Device recommendations

5.1 Essential functionality of BWV

5.2 Additional device considerations

5.3 Software and video management systems

6 Data management and security

6.1 General

6.2 General principles

6.3 Transfer of data for remote monitoring

6.4 Off-site storage

6.5 Sharing and redaction

7 Remote monitoring, escalation and response

8 Training and support

8.1 General

8.2 Supplier's own staff including temporary or subcontracted staff

8.3 User BWV training

8.4 Data handling training

8.5 Operator training

Bibliography

BS 8593:2017

Code of practice for the deployment and use of Body Worn Video (BWV)

Published:

30 Jun 2017

Withdrawn:

12 Dec 2025