The move to privacy to escape scrutiny has made

candid photographers jitery

Under scurtiny of the general public and the French goverment the photo sharing site Ipernity has made changes to it's terms of service (TOS). The rules by which subscribers must follow and Ipernity must inforce in order to meet the requirements of French and European governments.
Based in France, Ipernity a small photo sharing and social networking site much like the larger Yahoo site Flickr made changes to it's TOS to reflect the laws in which country it presides. These laws require public companies to adhere to laws for the public good. Laws in which Ipernity translates to the TOS so that they cover their asses in case law suits are filed against them.
A new rule that has got a small group of subcribers wondering about their own asses namely candid photograhers effects almost all subribers in any photo sharing site. That is the public showing of photos with people in public areas. In France it's against the law to publicily show photos of a person's likeness especailly their face and display it for public view.

A moderator of the French laws working for Ipernity wished to remain nameless said:
" The publishing of a photo in which somebody is clearly recognizable is only possible with their consent. Exceptions to this rule are photos of a crowd where the person is not the central topic or pictures taken from a distance or from behind."

Why French law has candid photographers in an up roar is the idea that people in public places have no private interest in a public setting. In the United States it's referred to as public domain and therefore can't be governed by private interest. Though the photo sharing site Flickr has interpreted this in their own way as to state in their TOS, any photo taken of a person without their consent is viewed as "voyeuristic" and is therefore "creepy" and will not be tolerated.

One candid photographer who goes by the name of Steelfez, factious names used by photographers of candid images are used for creative purposes and anonymity. States on his blog.
"Candid photographers are making the ordinary and sometimes the exemplary famous for about twenty seconds or all tolled for about thirty minutes if it's a good shot. Then the shot is forgotten or at least until we pull down our pants…NOT! Yes we have a few that appreciate the naturally beautiful more than others. You will find a few in any circle one roames. As a whole we are not perverse, stalkers, spy's or sick. We police ourselves moderately well and really try not to offend anybody with provocative angles or shots. Some of us push the boundaries of the definition of candid so we could be more cognizant of who these photographers are.
In general we appreciate the ordinary, the average and sometimes the different everyday person. We have taken sitting on the park bench people watching to the next level and shared with the rest of the world. So what!"

These two companies albeit in different countries under different jurisdictions have effectively obstructed free speech. What some candid photographers fear is how or who makes the decision on what is permissible and what is not. Both Ipernity and Flickr claim they have the public interest in mind yet according to subscribers of both sites images of pornographic nature don't meet the same kind of criteria due to fact that most of these types of photos have the consent of the person(s) involved.

Steelfez has a different point of view. "What's worse for our children to come across accidently or on purpose on these sites. A woman dressed walking down a street in her environment or a woman with her legs spread wide showing her "you know what". I doubt the woman walking the street will be remembered but the porno chick will make her rounds through the kids computer network".

With that said Steelfez has had to make some changes too. He administrates two groups on Ipernity. Serieously Candid, spelled wrong for effect, and Head Turners. Two groups that he feels might fall under the scrutiny of the Ipernity moderators eventually. So he has followed suit with other candid groups and has switched his groups to the private setting. A setting that limits who can see what while paging through or searching Ipernity photos.
He said that because some candid photographers have been either eliminated or temporarily band from using Ipernity or Flickr. He feels it's necessary to protect the investment of these "shooters" as he calls them, and make his groups private. Along with all of his own work so that he doesn't find himself deleted or scrutinized.

Although the matter of privacy is a touchy subject it will always be a matter for the individual. The laws on the books seem to protect a small group of people concerned about their privacy, mainly celebrities or children.
It's the hope of many candid photographers that someday they will be appreciated for their work. Either historically or artistically it doesn't matter much to Steelfez. He'll always appreciate the naturally average and sometimes exemplary photography of people on the streets.