UK govt details police use of facial recognition during anti-immigration protests

Nearly a month after anti-immigration protests and riots shook the UK, policing authorities have announced the arrest of 1,280 people, the majority of which were captured after obtaining video footage and matching their faces with retrospective facial recognition. Meanwhile, police authorities continue to announce new deployments of live facial recognition for public safety.

The police compiled evidence against the rioters using footage from body-worn video cameras, social media, CCTV and video doorbells. Additional video materials were captured by drones and helicopters and by evidence-gathering teams deployed on the ground during the protests, according to a document released by the UK parliament.

As of August 30th, 796 people have been charged for involvement in the violence that followed the Southport stabbing attack, which left three children dead and ten other people injured. The police have identified hundreds more suspects in connection with the disorder, data from the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) shows.

Police work during the 29 demonstrations, which lasted from July 30th to August 7th, resulted in 570 people brought before the courts by September 2nd. The highest sentence of nine years was given to a man who set fire to a hotel housing asylum seekers. Other defendants were given sentences between two years and three years and four months.

Live facial recognition deployments continue

The UK summer of riots may be over but police continue to rely on technology to capture criminals at sporting venues and public transportation hubs.

After North Wales Police announced last week that it would be using live facial recognition at specific events across the region, the first results of the new deployments are finally in. During a football match between Wrexham AFC and Shrewsbury Town in Wrexham, Wales last weekend, the system scanned a total of 34,900 faces, resulting in 11 alerts for wanted individuals. However, no arrests were made, local media reported.

Police authorities clarified that the live facial recognition system only flags faces appearing in a database of wanted persons. Biometric data of people who are not on the watchlist are immediately deleted.

“No biometric data, or images of faces scanned, were retained by North Wales Police,” the department said, adding that the technology was also used earlier this year at Holyhead Port, a ferry port handling more than 2 million passengers each year.

The system used by the North Wales Police is supplied by the South Wales Police, which added that no wrongful arrests have been recorded.

The South Wales Police is also lending the technology to its colleagues in Hampshire who have announced a three-day trial running from September 10th to 12th. A police van equipped with a camera and facial recognition will be used in Portsmouth, Southampton, Basingstoke and Winchester, according to the BBC.

Article Topics

biometric identification  |  biometrics  |  facial recognition  |  London Metropolitan Police  |  North Wales Police  |  police  |  real-time biometrics  |  South Wales Police