British Transport Police (BTP) have begun a six month pilot of live facial recognition (LFR) technology across key London transport hubs, with the first deployment taking place at London Bridge station on Wednesday 11 February.
The force said the trial follows “a significant amount of research and planning” and is intended to assess how the technology performs in a busy railway environment. Dates and locations of all deployments will be published online in advance.
Chief Superintendent Chris Casey, who is overseeing the project, said BTP had worked closely with Network Rail, the Department for Transport and the Rail Delivery Group to reach this stage. He emphasised that the initiative is “a trial of the technology to assess how it performs in a railway setting”.
The LFR cameras scan faces in real time and compare them against a watchlist of individuals wanted for serious offences. When the system identifies a possible match, an alert is generated for an officer to review before any action is taken.
According to BTP, “images of anyone not on the authorised database will be deleted immediately and permanently”. Individuals who prefer not to enter the recognition zone will be able to use alternative routes through the station.
The force is using NEC’s NeoFace M40 algorithm, which it says has been independently tested by the National Physical Laboratory to assess accuracy and any potential impact on protected characteristics such as race, age and sex.
BTP said the pilot will be targeted at crime hotspots where data indicates a likelihood of high harm offenders passing through.
Each deployment will undergo a full health and safety assessment, and CCTV footage used by the LFR cameras will be retained for 31 days.
The force has committed to publishing details of each deployment in advance and displaying prominent signage at stations. QR codes will allow passengers to provide feedback.
BTP said the trial will comply with the Data Protection Act 2018, the Human Rights Act 1998 and the Equality Act 2010, with oversight from internal governance bodies and external ethics and advisory groups.
A list of the legal and policy documents supporting the trial is below:
- LFR - Legal Mandate
- LFR - Equality Impact Assessment
- LFR - Appropriate Policy Document 01
- LFR - Appropriate Policy Document 02
- LFR - Data Protection Impact Assessment - Stage 01
- LFR - Data Protection Impact Assessment - Stage 02
- LFR - Policy
- LFR - Policy Appendix
At the end of the six month period, BTP will conduct a full evaluation to “review outcomes, identify lessons learned, and inform future planning”.
