West Yorkshire Police says live facial recognition has contributed to 113 arrests in the 12 months since the force introduced the technology, including 15 linked to offenses of violence against women and girls.
The force’s two camera vans have been deployed in Bradford, Leeds and Wakefield city centers and Huddersfield town center, as well as at the Leeds Festival site at Bramham and the Roundhay Festival. Those arrested included people wanted by the courts, suspects in criminal investigations and offenders sought for a range of offenses.
The cameras were also used to identify 147 people subject to Sexual Harm Prevention Orders, which allowed officers to check whether they were complying with the conditions of those orders.
The system scans faces in real time and compares them against a watchlist of people the force is authorized to look for. A match generates an alert for officers to review before they act. Images and biometric data of anyone who is not matched are deleted automatically and immediately, the force said. Its first deployment in Kirklees, in Huddersfield in August, led to three arrests.
“LFR is not a replacement for traditional policing,” said Chief Inspector Tom Perry, who leads the force’s live facial recognition program. “It is another tool available to officers that helps us identify people we are lawfully seeking to find while allowing the vast majority of people going about their daily lives to remain unaffected.”
Alison Lowe, West Yorkshire’s deputy mayor for policing and crime, called the technology “a crucial tool in our efforts to halve violence against women and girls over the next decade, identifying those wanted for serious offences like stalking, harassment, or domestic abuse.”
The force said it has worked with legal, ethical and community representatives to keep its use of the technology in line with data protection, equality and human rights law, and that independent oversight and regular reviews remain in place. The UK government said this month that it will put police facial recognition under a specific law and create a watchdog with enforcement powers.
West Yorkshire Police said it will continue to use live facial recognition where there is a clear policing purpose.
Sources: West Yorkshire Police
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By the ID Tech Editorial Team
