The National Transport Authority is inviting submissions on making security cameras a legal requirement in taxis.
A number of drivers have expressed concerns for their safety recently, and last week a taxi driver was stabbed in his car in Athlone. The NTA is now opening public consultation on mandatory safety equipment in taxis - including always-on security cameras.
John Motherway of Safe Cab Security is in favour of the idea, but said it is important the right to privacy is maintained.
"There are many systems out there at the moment which taxi drivers are using, which provide zero data protection to drivers and passengers alike," he said.
He said many systems use SD cards to record video data, which can be physically removed with ease, tampered with, or have their non-encrypted contents uploaded to video sites like YouTube.
The mandatory requirement for "safety equipment" in small public service vehicles - including all forms of taxi - covers not only security cameras, but also partitions separating the driver and passengers, and a location tracking system.
Submissions are accepted until September 25 on the National Transport Authority website.