Challenge to facial recognition at protests to be examined by Supreme Court of India

India’s Supreme Court will hear a challenge to the deployment of facial recognition technology (FRT) and other biometric surveillance tech by police at protest venues. A report from the Deccan Herald says the writ petition is linked to demonstrations by the Cockroach Janta Party, the student-led movement that has shaken up Indian politics in recent months.

The piece names two facial recognition providers, Aditya Infotech Ltd. and Dimension NXG Pvt Ltd., that supported police facial recognition deployments in Delhi. Aditya Infotech maps faces while the Dimension system tracks vehicles.

‘Indiscriminate biometric surveillance’ unconstitutional

Petitioners say the biometric data was collected without consent and stored by the private firms in violation of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act 2023 – arguing that Delhi Police “conducted extensive biometric surveillance in a complete legal vacuum,” using automated live facial recognition through CCTV cameras, drones, and a mobile command and control vehicle.

“The petition highlighted the use of real-time facial recognition via the ‘Ikshana’ vehicle and ‘AjnaLens’ smart spectacles, along with fingerprint matching through the ‘Abhigyan’ mobile application,” says the Herald.

The Cockroach Janta Party’s rise presents a challenge to the established regime of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and fears of government surveillance of protests are rooted in real political crackdowns.

Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana have taken up the writ petition for examination.

The inclusion of smart glasses in Delhi police’s surveillance arsenal raises more questions about the safety of Meta’s controversial offering in the market. This month, two Florida sheriff’s offices purchased Meta smart glasses; reporting on the story, Biometric Update’s Anthony Kimery writes that it demonstrates that “consumer equipment capable of taking photographs, recording audio and video, and transmitting a wearer’s view can be acquired by law enforcement agencies with the rules governing its use disclosed unevenly from one office to another.”

Meta is already in Modi’s bad books, having temporarily removed a video posted by the Prime Minister, prompting government calls for the company to retool its algorithms and provide a roadmap to compliance.

Article Topics

biometric data  |  cctv  |  India  |  law enforcement  |  live facial recognition  |  police  |  surveillance