Noun

(-)

the act of keeping something safe; protection from harm, damage, loss, or theft

the storage of assets in a protected area

the responsibility of a guardian

(US) not returning checks; a system wherein banks keep checks (cheques) that people write, rather than returning them to the account holder with their monthly statement.

Noun

(en noun)

Close observation of an individual or group; person or persons under suspicion.

Continuous monitoring of disease occurrence for example.

(military, espionage) Systematic observation of places and people by visual, aural, electronic, photographic or other means.

* {{quote-magazine, date=2012-12-14

, author=Simon Jenkins, authorlink=Simon Jenkins , title=We mustn't overreact to North Korea boys' toys , volume=188, issue=2, page=23 , date=2012-12-21 , magazine= citation , passage=The threat of terrorism to the British lies in the overreaction to it of British governments. Each one in turn clicks up the ratchet of surveillance , intrusion and security. Each one diminishes liberty.}}

(legal) In criminal law, an investigation process by which police gather evidence about crimes, or suspected crime, through continued observation of persons or places.