08 November 2019
An opinion published by the Information Commissioner. The main outcome is to assert that existing data protection laws not only already apply to live facial recognition, but that facial data is "sensitive" data.
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"The Commissioner has previously expressed her viewsabout the risks to the rights and freedoms of individuals arising from the disproportionate use oflive facial recognition(LFR), unnecessary intrusion into individuals’ daily lives and the potential detriment this could cause, eg unwarranted police intervention. In addition, the Commissioner has blogged about how data protection law applies to the processing of such biometric data.
The ICO has produced this Opinion in relation to our regulation of the processing of personal data which takes place whenever law enforcement organisations deploy facial recognition technology in public spaces. It aims to guide law enforcement through all the stages of that processing."
See: UK: Information Commissioner’s Opinion: The use of live facial recognition technology by law enforcement in public places (pdf)
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