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The Home Office has revealed plans to expand the use of live facial recognition (LFR) vans in England, with seven police forces set to receive 10 new vehicles. These vans will be equipped with cameras that scan the faces of individuals passing by and compare them against a list of wanted suspects, focusing on crimes such as sexual offences, violent assaults, and homicides.
According to government data, LFR technology has already been successful in London, resulting in 580 arrests within a year, including apprehending 52 registered sex offenders who had violated their conditions. However, advocacy group Big Brother Watch has expressed concerns over what they perceive as a significant expansion of surveillance practices, labeling the move as “alarming.”
Live facial recognition was initially deployed in England and Wales during the 2017 Uefa Champions League final in Cardiff. Since then, the technology has mainly been utilized in South Wales, London, and Essex, even being used at events like a Beyoncé concert to scan for individuals linked to paedophilia and terrorism. The expansion will see ten vans shared among Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, Bedfordshire, Surrey, Sussex, Thames Valley, and Hampshire.
While the government is funding the implementation of more LFR vans, a consultation is being held to establish the necessary safeguards to ensure transparency and public confidence. Big Brother Watch, alongside individuals like Shaun Thompson who was wrongly identified by an LFR camera, have initiated legal challenges against the Metropolitan Police’s use of the technology, urging the Home Office to halt further deployments until robust legislative controls are in place. Liberty’s policy and campaigns officer, Charlie Whelton, echoed these sentiments, emphasizing the need for public consultation and legislative frameworks before any further expansion of facial recognition technology
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