tech
Met to expand use of live facial recognition into central London by Christmas
Technology to be used in six more areas next year as critics say tens of thousands of people will be forced into ‘digital police lineup’
TL;DR
- The Metropolitan police will expand the use of live facial recognition (LFR) technology.
- New fixed cameras will be installed in London's West End by Christmas and six other areas next year.
- LFR technology scans faces and compares them against a watchlist of wanted suspects.
- The Met claims LFR is a success, citing 173 arrests during a six-month pilot in Croydon with a low rate of misidentification.
- Critics warn the expansion represents an alarming escalation of intrusive technology and forces innocent people into a "digital police lineup".
- Concerns are raised about the potential for LFR algorithms to discriminate against black people, though the Met states sensitivity adjustments have nearly eliminated bias.
- The Met insists arrest decisions are made by humans and that non-matching faces are deleted almost instantaneously.
- Public confidence in LFR is stated to be around 80% among Londoners, according to Sir Mark Rowley.