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Facial Recognition (597A/22and 601A/22)

Request 597A/22

Please provide answers to the following:

  1. Does the police force have any plans to introduce facial recognition?
  2.  If so, please provide all information relating to those plans.
  3. Does the police force have any plans to introduce retrospective facial recognition?
  4. If so, please provide all information relating to those plans.

REQUEST 601A/22

     1. Does west midlands police currently use, or is it planning to use retrospective facial recognition?

Retrospective facial recognition is facial recognition software that matches CCTV or other images to         images in database libraries.

  1. If so, please provide any policy or other documents relating to the use of that retrospective facial recognition technology

Response

In relation to the Force Business Transformation Department, that sits within WMP and is the department that deals with Facial Recognition, regarding overt Live Facial Recognition technology, we can advise that at this moment in time, the force is not using or trialling overt Facial Recognition or retrospective facial recognition software and we are not aware of any plans to introduce either of these capabilities in the near future.

In addition, the force can neither confirm nor deny that it holds any other information in relation to covert usage or trials as the duty in Section 1(1)(a) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 does not apply by virtue of the following exemptions:

Section 23(5) Information supplied by, or concerning, certain Security Bodies

Section 24(2) – National security

Section 31(3) – Law enforcement

Section 23 is a class based absolute exemption and there is no requirement to consider the public interest in this case.

Confirming or denying the existence of whether any other information is held would contravene the constrictions laid out within Section 23 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 in that this stipulates a generic bar on disclosure of any information applied by, or concerning, certain Security Bodies.

In respect of Section 24(2) National Security and Section 31 – Law Enforcement I am required to complete a Prejudice Test/Public Interest Test (PIT) on disclosure. Please find this PIT attached

This exemption and explanatory notes is shown here:

https://www.app.college.police.uk/app-content/information-management/freedom-of-information/#freedom-of-information-exemptions

No inference can be taken from this refusal that any further information relevant to your request does or does not exist.

Attachments

597A_22 & 601A_22_PIT