Italian authorities detail technical strategies for implementing age verification within the EC's white-label age-assurance mobile app.
UK Police Seek Increased Funding for Facial Recognition Technology Expansion
In a bid to intensify the use of digital tools for crime prevention, UK police chiefs are planning to allocate £220 million annually over the next three years. This investment will primarily focus on expanding the application of facial recognition technology.
The Metropolitan Police has already employed the technology since 2020, scanning nearly 800,000 faces and preparing for a long-term trial in Croydon this summer, marking the first permanent facial recognition cameras in England and Wales. The widespread deployment of this technology is intended to make it more commonplace across the country.
Live Facial Recognition has demonstrated promising results, resulting in approximately 60 arrests per month across three forces in 2024, with a quarter of arrests involving registered sex offenders. The technology expedites investigation times, thereby facilitating swifter justice.
However, the growth of this technology has prompted concerns over the absence of comprehensive regulations. The Ada Lovelace Institute has voiced concerns regarding the fragmented governance framework, advocating for new legislation to clearly delineate acceptable uses of facial recognition.
Moreover, the UK's approach to facial recognition governance has been criticized for its fragmentation, creating legal loopholes that may erode public trust and trigger increased scrutiny on ethical and privacy standards.
Despite these challenges, the deployment of facial recognition technology is expected to liberate considerable police time, potentially up to 15 million hours annually. This newly-freed time could be reutilized for enhanced community policing and crime prevention efforts, leading to significant productivity improvements and better policing outcomes.
- To effectively address these growing concerns around the governance and ethical standards of facial recognition technology, it's crucial for the allocated £220 million to also cover the development of comprehensive cybersecurity measures in the implementation of facial recognition.
- As facial recognition technology becomes more prevalent across the UK, it's essential to ensure that robust cybersecurity safeguards are in place to secure both the technology and the personal data of citizens from potential misuse or unauthorized access.
