If you’re heading into Chester today, police facial recognition cameras will be operating in the city centre
Cheshire Constabulary is operating live facial recognition technology in Chester city centre today, Thursday 5 March, in the first use of the system anywhere in the county.
The deployment is aimed at identifying individuals wanted by police, outstanding suspects, or those considered a risk of harm to the public.
The technology works by scanning faces in the area covered by the deployment and checking them in real time against a pre-approved watchlist.
If a person passing through does not match anyone on that list, their biometric data is automatically and immediately deleted, according to Cheshire Constabulary.
Officers must confirm any potential match before taking action.
Cheshire Constabulary says strict privacy, data protection and human rights safeguards are in place for every deployment.
Signs will be displayed throughout the city centre to make residents, visitors and business owners aware the technology is in use.
Officers will be available throughout the day to answer questions.
Chief Inspector Darren Griffiths, who is overseeing the deployment, said: “Keeping people safe is at the heart of everything we do, and LFR is another tool that can help us locate people who may pose a risk to the public.”
“We know that people understandably have questions about how LFR works, so we will be on hand throughout the day to explain the process, what the technology does and importantly what it doesn’t do.”
“It does not store images of the general public, it does not track people, and it is not used for mass surveillance. The system only alerts officers to individuals who are already wanted for specific offences.”
Further information on how the technology works and the safeguards governing its use is available on the Cheshire Constabulary website.
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