Big Brother Watch condemns UK’s first use of city-wide facial recognition in Cardiff

Responding to South Wales Police’s announcement that it will be installing a network of facial recognition cameras across Cardiff city centre for Six Nations rugby games, Madeleine Stone, Senior Advocacy Officer at Big Brother Watch, said:

“Embedding facial recognition surveillance in a city-wide CCTV network represents a shocking expansion of police surveillance, and turns Cardiff into an Orwellian zone of biometric surveillance. This unprecedented use of the technology could pave the way for the mass rollout of permanent facial recognition surveillance across the UK.

“Live facial recognition technology turns us into walking barcodes and makes us a nation of suspects. This network of facial recognition cameras will make it impossible for Cardiff residents and visitors to opt-out of a biometric police identity check.

“For the last three years, South Wales Police has not made a single arrest due to use of this technology at sporting events, yet the force continues to waste taxpayers’ money on this rights-abusing technology. No other democracy in the world spies on its population with live facial recognition in this cavalier and chilling way. South Wales Police must immediately stop this dystopian trial.”

NOTES

• In a UK first, South Wales Police is introducing ‘semi-permanent’ facial recognition cameras across Cardiff city centre during this year’s Six Nations rugby internationals. Cameras will be positioned at the main pedestrian entry points, making it impossible for members of the public to avoid the cameras. Forces have previously deployed live facial recognition vans equipped with one camera.
• In the last three years of their deployment live facial recognition at sporting events, South Wales Police has made no arrests. The last arrest was made on 23rd March 2022, despite multiple deployments at other rugby and football events.
• Spokespeople are available for interview – please contact 07730439257 or [email protected]
• Big Brother Watch is at the forefront of the UK campaign to stop live facial recognition surveillance – our campaign page, with details of our latest research and investigations, including facial recognition inaccuracy statistics, is available at StopFacialRecognition.org

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