It's been estimated that in the UK there is one CCTV surveillance camera for every 14 people. A 2008 Report by UK Police Chiefs concluded that only 3% of crimes were solved by CCTV. In October 2009 the website Internet Eyes was established, which pays members of the public to view CCTV camera images from their homes and report any crimes they witness.

The term "Ring of Steel" is the common name for the seamless wall of video surveillance that guards the City of London. Besides providing comprehensive video coverage, the security network also photographs and stores images of every vehicle's driver and their license plate.

The photos in this 40-page book document London CCTV cameras in public spaces. Some photos have the human subjects layered on transparent acetate pages, so the transparent page can be turned to isolate the cameras in the scene. Other photos include abstract geometric clusters mimicking their CCTV counterparts.