Growing up in the 1960s before “60 Minutes,” there was a Sunday evening television show called “Candid Camera.” It conjured up embarrassing yet funny hidden filming culminating in “Smile, you’re on Candid Camera.”

In 1974, when doing research using controlled medication, I found drugs missing from my lab and reported it to law enforcement. Promptly, they installed a hidden camera and identified the culprits stealing from the security safe.

Fast-forward to the present when all of us have a camera in our smart phones. No longer hidden, cranking it up takes only a few moments to start “filming” anyone and everything: Damage in an auto accident, a baby’s first steps, or grandma’s recollections of her past.

As a doctor, I utilize this technology remotely for telemedicine, especially for elder seniors confined by COVID-19.

Nowadays, an invaluable use is documenting truth and facts, in case they might be disputed in the future. All of us, including police or looters, should be aware you might be captured on someone’s phone committing a crime.

Everyone can now be held accountable. Just don’t forget to smile!

Gene Uzawa Dorio, M.D., is a geriatric house-call physician who serves as president of the Los Angeles County Commission for Older Adults and Assemblyman to the California Senior Legislature. He has practiced in the Santa Clarita Valley for 32 years.