The UK’s equality regulator has criticised the Metropolitan Police’s use of live facial recognition technology (LFR), saying the way it is being deployed is breaching human rights law.
The tech works by scanning the faces of people recorded on CCTV and then comparing them against a watchlist of people who the police are seeking.
The Met says it has made more than 1,000 arrests since January 2024 using LFR and is confident it uses it in a lawful way.
But the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) says the tech should only be used in a necessary and proportionate way, and is arguing “the Metropolitan Police’s current policy falls short of this standard.”
The EHRC has been granted permission to intervene in an upcoming judicial review into the force’s use of the surveillance tool.
John Kirkpatrick, chief executive of the EHRC, acknowledged the tech could be used help to combat serious crime and keep people safe.
But he added in a statement: “There must be clear rules which guarantee that live facial recognition technology is used only where necessary, proportionate and constrained by appropriate safeguards. We believe that the Metropolitan Police’s current policy falls short of this standard.”
A Met Police spokesperson told the BBC: “We believe our use of LFR is both lawful and proportionate, playing a key role in keeping Londoners safe.”
They added: “The Court of Appeal has confirmed the police can use LFR under Common Law powers, with the Met carefully developing a policy to operate the technology in a way which protects people’s rights and privacy.”
The EHRC said it recognised the potential benefits of the technology in policing but was concerned that the Met’s current policy breached key human rights protections and posed a threat to human rights.
These include the rights to privacy, freedom of expression, and freedom of assembly, as set out in the European Convention on Human Rights.
Last month, the Met said the tech had enable it to arrest suspected offenders including alleged paedophiles, rapists and violent robbers, 773 of whom had been charged or a cautioned.
The Met has announced plans to use the technology to police major events such as Notting Hill Carnival – a proposal which has proved divisive.
Civil rights groups and privacy campaigners have consistently opposed LFRT, saying it invades people’s privacy, and carries an unacceptable risk of misidentification.
The Met has defended its use, however, saying it helps cut crime at a time when “money is tight.”
Currently, there is no specific domestic legislation regulating police use of live facial recognition tech.