South Wales Police 'committed to using facial recognition technology'
A report has found the technology doesn't breach equality requirements
South Wales Police says it's committed to using facial recognition technology as a report finds the tech doesn't breach equality requirements.
Chief Constable Jeremy Vaughan says they'll continue to use it to help keep the region safe.
A number of independent trials have been carried out within the force where data has been tested and evaluated.
A report found that the force is using facial recognition technology in a responsible way and isn't discriminating on the grounds of gender, race or age.
This review came about following a Court of Appeal judgment which highlighted concerns about its use.
The force says that up until that legal challenge the technology resulted in 61 people being arrested on suspicion of offences including robbery, violence and theft.
The deployments took place at events ranging from major sporting and public events in Cardiff and Swansea to supporting operations to tackle local criminality.
Chief Constable Jeremy Vaughan, who is also the national policing lead on biometrics, said: “My priority will always be to protect the public while relentlessly pursuing those people determined to cause harm in our communities. It is important to use new technology to help us achieve that.
“It is right and proper that our use of technology is subject to legal challenge and scrutiny and the work that has been carried out to scrutinise and test this ground-breaking technology gives me confidence that we are meeting our equality obligations.
“The study confirms that the way South Wales Police uses the technology does not discriminate on the grounds of gender, age or race and this reinforces my long-standing belief that the use of facial recognition technology is a force for good and will help us keep the public safe and assist us in identifying serious offenders in order to protect our communities from individuals who pose significant risks.
“I believe the public will continue to support our use of all the available methods and technology to keep them safe and thanks to the work of the National Physical Laboratory and the results of its independent evaluation I believe we are now in a stronger position than ever before to be able to demonstrate that the use of facial recognition technology is fair, legitimate, ethical and proportionate.”
Since the legal challenge we have seen the development of the Surveillance Camera Commissioner’s Code of Practice and the College of Policing Authorised Professional Practice which sets out our obligations in the use of live facial recognition technology.
Mr Vaughan added: “There was nothing in the Court of Appeal judgment that fundamentally undermined the use of facial recognition to protect the public and I am pleased that the work that has been carried out has given us confidence in meeting our public sector equality impact obligations and strengthened the operational policies and guidance we have in place to withstand the most robust legal challenge and public scrutiny.”