BIG BOTHER
Cops fear gangsters are evading law as city’s facial recognition cameras remain mothballed
GANGSTERS in Glasgow are getting away with serious crimes – because a multi-million-pound CCTV facial recognition system has never been turned on.
Fears over Big Brother-style human rights breaches mean the technology put in place in the city in 2015 has not gone live, sparking fury from frontline police officers.
The Scottish Police Federation said serious organised crime groups could be targeted more effectively using the cameras.
Police Scotland has publicly distanced itself from any controversy over the issue but many officers have expressed frustration.
A senior officer said: “Knowing we have this tool but can’t use it feels almost like being told we have to stop using DNA or fingerprints.
“This would not be used to track shoplifters, but that shouldn’t mean we don’t use it to track terrorists or serious organised crime groups.
“These people can – and do – change their cars every day, but they can’t change their faces.”
David Hamilton, chairman of the federation, said the average mobile phone had facial recognition capacity beyond that of any device available to police.
He added: “Most people don’t have a problem with Google, Apple and Amazon using algorithms that include facial recognition with no governance whatsoever.
“But because of the way it has been presented as a step towards some kind of Big Brother state, we’re told the public has a problem with the police using it.
“As well as tracking criminals and preventing or detecting crime, it would find missing people quickly.
“Why would we not use that technology and why would the public not want us to use it?
“Public perception should be driven by facts rather than scaremongering.”
Hamilton added: “The federation was asked to present a consultation document on this issue to Holyrood’s justice sub-committee on policing last year. It was understandably very positive about the benefits facial recognition technology would have for policing.
“They wouldn’t even take our evidence, so the resulting report was flawed, promoting an illjudged fear of giving the police this powerful new tool.”
MSPs recently passed a law that will create the post of biometrics commissioner for Scotland. It should be active by early next year and one of the commissioner’s first challenges will be to offer guidance on the lawful use of the technology.
The advanced cameras that support facial recognition were bought by Glasgow City Council in 2015 as part of the Future Cities project to upgrade the CCTV network in public spaces.
Glasgow received £24million from the UK Government towards the project, of which £12.7million was spent on the new Glasgow Operations Centre. All 500 or so of the city’s outdated analogue cameras were replaced with digital high-definition models capable of using the software.
A council spokesman said: “There is no confirmed date as to when the Person Search software will be put into operation.”
Assistant Chief Constable Duncan Sloan, responsible for major crime and public protection, said: “Police Scotland is not using, trialling or testing live facial recognition technology. We are keeping a watching brief on the trialling of the technology in England and Wales.
“Prior to any such technology being implemented, we would carry out a robust programme of public consultation and engagement around the use of this technology, its legitimacy, viability and value for money.
“The use of such technology would not be widespread but would be used in an intelligence-led, targeted way.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Once appointed, the new Scottish biometrics commissioner will ensure that the police’s approach to biometric data, including the potential use of new technologies such as facial recognition software, is carried out in a lawful, effective, proportionate and ethical way.”