Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

UK privacy advocates sound alarm on ‘dystopian’ live facial recognition technology used by police

UK privacy advocates sound alarm on ‘dystopian’ live facial recognition technology used by police

UK privacy and civil liberties campaigners say that the proposed changes to the code on the use of facial recognition systems by police leave a path for this technology to be abused by the state.

Last week, the Home Office drafted an update to the guidelines on the use of live facial recognition (LFR) to identify suspects in England and Wales through CCTV footage and match them with watch-lists.

Under the law, deployment of LFR must be justified and proportionate, while police must consider its effects on the privacy and freedoms of individuals.

However, the proposed changes to the code are very “bare bones”, Tony Porter, the UK government’s surveillance camera commissioner between 2014 and December 2020, told the BBC.

“I don't think it provides much guidance to law enforcement” or to the public “as to how the technology will be deployed”, Porter said.

During his tenure as commissioner, Porter wrote a 72-page guidance which extensively covered ethics and other aspects of the use of LFR and now says he was surprised that almost none of his proposals have landed in the update draft.

The UK media reported in late July and early August that 10 police forces were testing LFR to see if they could match people to faces recorded and photographed by CCTV cameras. Because of the sensitivities over such technology, the software was reportedly tested on video clips and images of the forces’ own officers.

The looming expansion of the use of LFR startled privacy advocates, who warned that the method could be used to track down people attending political rallies, among other things.

“This could turn encounters with the police, whether at protests, on the roads or during stop and search, into an Orwellian police lineup resulting in yet more intrusive information gathering,” Silkie Carlo, the director of Big Brother Watch, said last month.

Human rights lawyer Megan Goulding told the BBC that LFR will “turn public spaces into open-air prisons and entrench patterns of discrimination” against oppressed communities.

In 2020, Goulding worked on the defence team of Ed Bridges, a former Liberal Democrat councilor, who was filmed by a police van’s automatic facial recognition system when attending a peaceful protest. Bridges won the case, with the court saying that more checks and tighter regulations were needed in terms of deploying LFR by police.

Little has changed since then, Goulding said.

"One year since our case… these guidelines fail to properly account for either the court’s findings or the dangers created by this dystopian surveillance tool."


The government said the proposed revision of the CCTV code is mostly technical, aimed at making the guidelines clearer and simpler. In a statement to the media, the Home Office said the government is committed to “empowering the police to use new technology to keep the public safe, whilst maintaining public trust”, and that the ruling in the Bridges Case will also be reflected in the update.

UK Information Commissioner Elizabeth Denham wrote on her blog in June that she was concerned about the potential of LFR in public places to “be used inappropriately, excessively or even recklessly”. She called for a fair balance between the lawful interests of the state and the rights of the general public.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
Western Europe Records Hottest June on Record
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
France Requests Airlines to Cut Flights at Paris Airports Amid Planned Air Traffic Controller Strike
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Extreme Heat Wave Sweeps Across Europe, Hitting Record Temperatures
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Germany Votes to Suspend Family Reunification for Asylum Seekers
Budapest Pride Parade Draws 200,000 Participants Amid Government Ban
Southern Europe Experiences Extreme Heat
Xiaomi's YU7 SUV Launch Garners Record Pre-Orders Amid Market Challenges
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's Lavish Wedding in Venice
Russia Launches Largest Air Assault on Ukraine Since Invasion
Massive Anti-Government Protests Erupt in Belgrade
Iran Executes Alleged Israeli Spies and Arrests Hundreds Amid Post-War Crackdown
Hungary's Prime Minister Criticizes NATO's Role in Ukraine
EU TO HUNGARY: LET THEM PRIDE OR PREP FOR SHADE. ORBÁN TO EU: STAY IN YOUR LANE AND FIX YOUR OWN MESS.
Hungarian Scientist to Conduct 30 Research Experiments on the International Space Station
NATO Members Agree to 5% Defense Spending Target by 2035
NATO Leaders Endorse Plan for Increased Defence Spending
U.S. Crude Oil Prices Drop Below $65 Amid Market Volatility
International Astronaut Team Launched to Space Station
Macron and Merz: Europe must arm itself in an unstable world
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Iran Intensifies Crackdown on Alleged Mossad Operatives After Sabotage Claims
Trump Praises Iran’s ‘Very Weak’ Response After U.S. Strikes and Presses Israel to Pursue Peace
Oil Prices Set to Surge After US Strikes Iran
BA and Singapore Airlines Cancel Dubai Flights Amid Middle East Tensions
Trump Faces Backlash from MAGA Base Over Iran Strikes
Meta Bets $14 B on Alexandr Wang to Drive AI Ambitions
FedEx Founder Fred Smith, ‘Heart and Soul’ of the Company, Dies at 80
Chinese Factories Shift Away from U.S. Amid Trump‑Era Tariffs
Pimco Seizes Opportunity in Japan’s Dislocated Bond Market
Labubu Doll Drives Pop Mart to Status as China’s Most Valuable Toy Maker
Global Coal Demand Defies Paris Accord Goals
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
×