FACIAL recognition cameras will be brought to more towns and cities as ministers look to unleash them nationwide.
The scanners have already helped to nail offenders by matching faces from CCTV, doorbells and live crowd footage, the Home Office says.
It has now launched a ten-week consultation seeking the public’s views on what safeguards are needed, saying people’s trust is vital and clear rules will give police the certainty to deploy them more widely without legal challenges slowing them down.
Policing minister Sarah Jones hailed the tech as the biggest breakthrough for catching criminals since DNA matching.
She added: “We will expand its use so forces can put more criminals behind bars and tackle crime in their communities.”
A new national face-matching system is also being tested to let officers search millions of custody images in seconds.
But Akiko Hart, of civil liberty group Liberty, said: “It’s disappointing the Home Office is starting a consultation with a pledge to ramp up its use.”
