Home / Crime and Justice / London's £320k Facial Scan Trial Yields Zero Arrests
London's £320k Facial Scan Trial Yields Zero Arrests
29 Sep
Summary
- Six-month trial cost over £320,000 for equipment and police.
- Almost 100 police hours were spent on the facial recognition system.
- The trial resulted in one false match and no arrests made.
A recent six-month trial of live facial recognition (LFR) technology in London's railway stations incurred a cost exceeding £320,000. This extensive deployment required nearly 100 hours of police time. The British Transport Police (BTP) initiative scanned over 500,000 faces between February and July. However, the technology yielded only one incorrect identification against a suspect watchlist, resulting in no arrests.
Despite the trial's outcome, BTP announced an extension for an additional four months, broadening its scope to include London Underground stations. Transport for London supports this expansion, stating LFR will target individuals on police watchlists at key stations to combat violence against women and girls. Experts question the proportionality and effectiveness of such deployments in public transport settings compared to retail environments.
