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How does live facial recognition work and how many UK police forces use it?
UK NewsTechnology•May 3, 2026 at 5:00 PMNational

How does live facial recognition work and how many UK police forces use it?

By Robert Booth•The Guardian - UK News

Technology has been deployed since 2020 in London, leading to concerns over data privacy and racial biasAI facial recognition oversight lagging far behind technology, watchdogs warnGuilty until proven innocent: shoppers falsely identified by facial recognitionThe Labour government thinks facial recognition technology is “the biggest breakthrough for catching criminals since DNA matching”. It wants all police forces to use it and recently announced 40 new vans rigged with live facial recognition cameras to be deployed in town centres across England and Wales.Supporters say it streamlines police work and catches criminals. Opponents fear it violates civil liberties and can be biased against minorities. Continue reading...

Technology has been deployed since 2020 in London, leading to concerns over data privacy and racial bias

The Labour government thinks facial recognition technology is “the biggest breakthrough for catching criminals since DNA matching”. It wants all police forces to use it and recently announced 40 new vans rigged with live facial recognition cameras to be deployed in town centres across England and Wales.

Supporters say it streamlines police work and catches criminals. Opponents fear it violates civil liberties and can be biased against minorities.

Continue reading...

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