Overview

• The Metropolitan Police in London used live facial recognition technology to arrest over 500 individuals in 2024 for crimes ranging from theft to rape.
• More than 50 sex offenders and individuals accused of serious violence against women, including stalking, domestic abuse, and rape, were among those apprehended.
• The system compares live footage of passers-by against a pre-approved watchlist, alerting officers when a match is detected for further investigation.
• Police state that biometric data of individuals not on the watchlist is immediately and permanently deleted to address privacy concerns.
• Civil liberties groups, such as Big Brother Watch, have criticized the technology as invasive and launched legal challenges to halt its expansion.