This personal security camera automatically uploads video to the cloud – meaning that should its wearer be assaulted, the evidence is already stored safely.

Streamcam, designed by Canadian tech start-up Shonin, is a small personal camera that can be magnetically clipped onto a wearer's clothes.

Once the record button is pressed, the camera begins to film – while simultaneously saving footage to the cloud or broadcasting through channels such as Facebook Live.

The camera is designed to reduce the number of instances where attackers are not convicted due to of lack of evidence. It is also meant to act as a deterrent to violence happening in the first place.

"Discrimination. Intimidation. Abuse of power – these daily realities often go unreported and unaddressed," said the company. "Shonin aims for change through equipping ordinary citizens with extraordinary tools for documenting and exposing injustices."

Streamcam films wide-angle footage, as well having a microphone to record audio. Its battery lasts for up to two and half hours of filming, and any streamed video is backed up onto a memory card.

A corresponding app allows users to edit their videos, as well as giving them the option to share to Facebook, YouTube and through email. The camera settings, such as white balance or the film resolution, can also be altered through the app.

Shonin was founded in 2016 by Sameer Hasan, Sergey Perunov and Robert Beghian. It has built a functional prototype of Streamcam and is now raising money for the next stage of development through Kickstarter.

The crowdfunding campaign comes at a time when police brutality and race protests – such as the recent white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, which left one person dead and many injured – are in the headlines.

"Discrimination and hate crimes are on the rise, street harassment is rampant, abuse of power often goes unaddressed," said the company in a statement on its website.

"An American becomes the victim of violence every half a second. That's over a million people every year, just in America. Our team decided to help, and Shonin was born with the mandate to make the world safer, fairer and more just."

Backers of Shonin's Kickstarter campaign will get two years of free cloud usage along with the product. For purchases made after the campaign has finished, the company plans to charge a monthly cost for storage.

Currently, the camera comes in two models – cellular and Wi-Fi. The cellular version can connect directly to the cloud with a SIM card, while the the Wi-Fi model connects to the cloud through a phone hotspot or available network.