# Camera-Shy Train Crews



## CSXfoamer1997 (May 10, 2017)

I've seen some things on Facebook, as well as YouTube, to where train crews are so camera-shy. It's like, when the train nears the camera, the engineer (or conductor for that matter) would pull the shade down. There's one on the Pacific Surfliner known for this, especially at Fullerton. Why are some train crews so camera-shy that they pull the shade down? I don't think that it's like anyone is going to see them through the dark windows/windshields and see who they are.


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## Devil's Advocate (May 10, 2017)

CSXfoamer1997 said:


> Why are some train crews so camera-shy that they pull the shade down? I don't think that it's like anyone is going to see them through the dark windows/windshields and see who they are.


Probably the same reason even longtime Amtrak passengers are convinced that people out in the sun can see through the dark tint covering the windows of their sleeper compartment. So far as I am aware it's simply not possible, but you cannot reason someone out of a position they didn't reason themselves into.


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## Cina (May 10, 2017)

Maybe they're on the run from the law.


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## Thirdrail7 (May 10, 2017)

It may be that old habits die hard. Before they changed the windshields, it was possible to see right in the cab of an AEM-7. Not even the side windows had tint or shades until the reman program. The same applied to the EMD diesel fleet. As such, they may be in the habit of pulling the shade even though the upgrades to the windshields and tint of the new engines makes it less likely to appear.

At any rate, perhaps they just want to make sure there is no way they can appear in your video. Some people just don't like to have their picture taken.


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## lo2e (May 10, 2017)

Let's be honest here - there are some shady people out there in the world. You never know when or where a picture of you is going to appear by someone with the wrong intentions. I, for one, would not be okay with someone randomly taking a picture of me (no matter how much or how little of me is revealed) and posting it publicly somewhere. God forbid a picture of you, me, or someone on a train crew is used for some sort of illegal activity - identity theft, fake IDs, etc. Some people don't want to take that chance, and frankly I don't blame them.


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## cirdan (May 10, 2017)

And software based face recognition is alraedy good. Maybe in a couple of years you wil be able to put somebody's photo into Google and find other phots of the same person and thus indirectly their name etc.

This could be the thin wedge of a huge erosion of personal privacy.


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## Devil's Advocate (May 10, 2017)

lo2e said:


> Let's be honest here - there are some shady people out there in the world. You never know when or where a picture of you is going to appear by someone with the wrong intentions. I, for one, would not be okay with someone randomly taking a picture of me (no matter how much or how little of me is revealed) and posting it publicly somewhere. God forbid a picture of you, me, or someone on a train crew is used for some sort of illegal activity - identity theft, fake IDs, etc. Some people don't want to take that chance, and frankly I don't blame them.


How would having your real picture on my fake document help me cross a border or make a purchase or open a credit account or take out a loan in your name?



cirdan said:


> And software based face recognition is alraedy good. Maybe in a couple of years you wil be able to put somebody's photo into Google and find other phots of the same person and thus indirectly their name etc. This could be the thin wedge of a huge erosion of personal privacy.


That cat is already out of the bag.


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## railiner (May 10, 2017)

Could also be that when an engineer sees people trackside in the distance, he doesn't really know their intentions for sure...he could be lowering the shade for some additional protection in case rocks happen to fly his way...


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## lo2e (May 11, 2017)

Devil's Advocate said:


> lo2e said:
> 
> 
> > Let's be honest here - there are some shady people out there in the world. You never know when or where a picture of you is going to appear by someone with the wrong intentions. I, for one, would not be okay with someone randomly taking a picture of me (no matter how much or how little of me is revealed) and posting it publicly somewhere. God forbid a picture of you, me, or someone on a train crew is used for some sort of illegal activity - identity theft, fake IDs, etc. Some people don't want to take that chance, and frankly I don't blame them.
> ...


While not any of the specific examples you or I posted, here's one example of someone using someone else's picture for no good: http://www.wbrc.com/story/35375607/on-your-side-investigators-crooks-stealing-military-ids-to-commit-online-romance-scams


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## Thirdrail7 (Nov 23, 2019)

It looks like @Fan Railer really found himself a camera-shy crew. 

LIRR Conductor Flips Off Person Filming New M9 Train
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/tech...ps-off-person-filming-new-m9-train/ar-AAHg2VY



> The Long Island Rail Road's new M9 train has attracted plenty of attention since its long-awaited debut on Wednesday and on Friday morning the railroad asked people to share photos of the new train on social media.
> 
> Less than an hour later, a video was posted on YouTube that shows a conductor on the M9 giving the middle finger to a person filming.
> 
> ...



Classic!! Was there any response to this?


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