The Metropolitan Police believe the software is an "important tool for victims getting justice"
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Metropolitan Police apprehended a suspect who had been wanted for a crime that took place in 2011.
Acting Chief Inspector Paul James gave the news to Wandsworth Council’s Safer Neighbourhood Board on Tuesday evening during a presentation on Live Facial Recognition.
Officers apprehended the wanted man during the borough’s first use of the software, outside Clapham Junction station in late February. He had legally changed his name since the warrant was issued and had not been caught by police in the 13 years since. He travelled in and out of the UK repeatedly during that time, the council board heard.
They also conducted an operation at the same time outside Tooting Broadway. Each operation lasted between six and a half to seven and a half hours.
How does facial recognition work?
Cameras that are fitted to a van use a watchlist database to match faces to those walking past. The system alerts officers to a match, who then engage with them. During the operations in Tooting Broadway and Clapham Junction, nine of the people that officers stopped had sexual harm orders.
Signs warn members of the public that they are about to pass through a facial recognition area and they have no obligation to pass through.
Privacy Concerns
The technology has been criticised by Big Brother Watch, a civil liberties campaign group. They believe that “police have written their own rules on how this technology can be used, allowing innocent people, such as victims and witnesses of crimes to be placed on watchlists, as well as peaceful protesters and people with mental health conditions.”
During the presentation to Wandsworth Council Safer Neighbourhood Board, the acting chief inspector said that the database containing non criminals allows officers to be alerted to people who could pose a danger to themselves and engage with them accordingly.
Everyone wants dangerous criminals off the street, but papering over the cracks of a creaking policing system with intrusive and Orwellian surveillance technology is not the solution.
Madeleine Stone, Senior Advocacy Officer at Big Brother Watch
The Metropolitan Police say that the algorithm the software uses has no impact on protected characteristics such as race. And that a facial image is deleted immediately if there is no match.
Currently, the scheme is funded by the government and staffed through overtime shifts. The police say as a result this does not detract from regular shifts and they anticipate the government funding to continue given the success of the scheme so far.
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HeadlineLive Metropolitan Police facial recognition software catches 13 year fugitive
Short HeadlineFacial recognition software catches 13 year fugitive
StandfirstThe suspect had legally changed their name, but their face matched with the Metropolitan Police's watchlist database that the software uses.
Metropolitan Police apprehended a suspect who had been wanted for a crime that took place in 2011.
Acting Chief Inspector Paul James gave the news to Wandsworth Council’s Safer Neighbourhood Board on Tuesday evening during a presentation on Live Facial Recognition.
Officers apprehended the wanted man during the borough’s first use of the software, outside Clapham Junction station in late February. He had legally changed his name since the warrant was issued and had not been caught by police in the 13 years since. He travelled in and out of the UK repeatedly during that time, the council board heard.
They also conducted an operation at the same time outside Tooting Broadway. Each operation lasted between six and a half to seven and a half hours.
How does facial recognition work?
Cameras that are fitted to a van use a watchlist database to match faces to those walking past. The system alerts officers to a match, who then engage with them. During the operations in Tooting Broadway and Clapham Junction, nine of the people that officers stopped had sexual harm orders.
Signs warn members of the public that they are about to pass through a facial recognition area and they have no obligation to pass through.
Privacy Concerns
The technology has been criticised by Big Brother Watch, a civil liberties campaign group. They believe that “police have written their own rules on how this technology can be used, allowing innocent people, such as victims and witnesses of crimes to be placed on watchlists, as well as peaceful protesters and people with mental health conditions.”
During the presentation to Wandsworth Council Safer Neighbourhood Board, the acting chief inspector said that the database containing non criminals allows officers to be alerted to people who could pose a danger to themselves and engage with them accordingly.
Everyone wants dangerous criminals off the street, but papering over the cracks of a creaking policing system with intrusive and Orwellian surveillance technology is not the solution.
Madeleine Stone, Senior Advocacy Officer at Big Brother Watch
The Metropolitan Police say that the algorithm the software uses has no impact on protected characteristics such as race. And that a facial image is deleted immediately if there is no match.
Currently, the scheme is funded by the government and staffed through overtime shifts. The police say as a result this does not detract from regular shifts and they anticipate the government funding to continue given the success of the scheme so far.
After an investigation by the Met Police, six people have been charged with links to the PKK and will appear in Westminster Magistrates Court on Tuesday.
