New York City Police Department tries out Google Glass- report

By Nicel Jane Avellana

Feb 06, 2014 12:07 AM EST

The intelligence and analytics unit of the New York City Police Department is beta-testing Google Glass, VentureBeat reported. The unit is checking out if Google's latest innovation could be used for terrorist investigations and "helping cops lock up bad guys" with the several pairs it has recently received, the report said.

A ranking law enforcement official of the department told VentureBeat in an interview, "We signed up, got a few pairs of the Google glasses, and we're trying them out, seeing if they have any value in investigations, mostly for patrol purposes. We're looking at them, you know, seeing how they work."

The specs can only be obtained via the Glass Explorer program of the search giant. Those who are interested in getting the glasses first file an application through the program. They will get a notification from Google to see if their application is approved or denied. If they are approved, they will have to fork out $1,500 to be able to get their glasses, the report said.

The development that the biggest police department in the US is testing Google's innovation comes at a rather sensitive moment for the tech company that has been embroiled in the intelligence-gathering efforts of spy agencies both locally and overseas. It can be recalled that Google Chairman Eric Schmidt wasn't too happy when documents from Edward Snowden showed that the NSA was hacking routinely on Google's servers to gather intelligence on some of the search giant's customers, the report said.

A Google spokesman told VentureBeat that the firm was not collaborating with law enforcement agencies on its latest product. He added that the NYPD probably got the glasses from the Google Glass Explorer program. The report quoted the statement from Google which said, "The Google Glass Explorer program includes people from all walks of life, including doctors, firefighters and parents. Anyone can sign up to become a Glass Explorer, provided he or she is a U.S. resident and over the age of 18."

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