Police Scotland hosts live facial recognition demonstration as national debate continues
Justice Secretary Neil Gray and human rights and information watchdogs attended the demonstration at Tulliallan, given by Greater Manchester Police.
The Scottish Police College at Tulliallan, where the live facial recognition demonstration took place. · Photograph: Jonathan Thacker (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Police Scotland has hosted a demonstration of live facial recognition (LFR) technology at its headquarters at Tulliallan, as part of a national conversation about whether the technology should be used in Scotland.
The event was part of the ongoing work by Police Scotland, the Scottish Police Authority and the Scottish Biometrics Commissioner to explore the potential use of live facial recognition to support policing.
Who attended
Justice Secretary Neil Gray attended, along with representatives from the Scottish Human Rights Commission, the Children and Young People's Commissioner, the Information Commissioner's Office and the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
Officers from the National Police Chiefs' Council's LFR unit and from Greater Manchester Police gave an overview of how the technology is used by forces in England and Wales, and Greater Manchester Police gave a live demonstration.
"The right safeguards"
Assistant Chief Constable Dave Ferry, who leads on organised crime, counter terrorism and intelligence, said: "Exploring new technologies and assessing how they can help us protect our communities is crucial in supporting policing and safeguarding our communities."
"Live facial recognition is one technology with that potential to provide transformative opportunity to keep people safe."
"We know people support use of LFR in the right circumstances and with the right safeguards. It's up to us to help people recognise the value of new technologies but also to assure our communities that we have strong governance and the right measures in place."
He added: "Our consideration of LFR continues, and the demonstration of current LFR technology today will help inform our next steps."
How it works
Live facial recognition uses cameras to scan faces in public spaces and compare them in real time against a watchlist of people sought by police. Any possible match is reviewed by an officer before action is taken.
A contested technology
The technology is already used by several police forces in England and Wales. Supporters say it helps catch wanted people quickly, while civil liberties groups have raised concerns about privacy, accuracy and the risk of bias. Police Scotland has not yet decided whether to use it.