Concerns over facial recognition in roll-out of Garda body-cams

The Policing Authority, the supervisory body for An Garda Síochána, said that applied incorrectly, the use of body-cameras or close circuit television could “be a barrier to the trust the public has” in the force.

The Data Protection Commission has expressed concerns about the possible use of facial recognition technology in the rollout of body-worn cameras for gardaí.

At a pre-legislative hearing of the Oireachtas Justice Committee for scrutinising the pending Garda Siochana (Digital Recording) Bill, the DPC said that while the bill “largely aligns” with Ireland’s 2018 Data Protection Act, nothing in it “provides a legal basis for the processing of special category data” which would allow for the automatic recognition of an individual.

“If it is the intention of the legislator that such processing its to be permitted, it would need to be explicitly and carefully provided for,” Dale Sutherland, deputy commissioner with the DPC, told the hearing.

The meeting heard from a number of concerned bodies regarding the proposed application of the bill, which was first announced last April.

The Policing Authority, the supervisory body for An Garda Síochána, said that applied incorrectly, the use of body-cameras or close circuit television could “be a barrier to the trust the public has” in the force.

Chair of the authority Bob Collins said that the boundaries for the use of such cameras “must be explicit and unequivocal” in order to avoid them being used “in policing contexts that were not contemplated but about which the legislation is silent”.

He added that the use of cameras must be transparent to the public and subject to independent oversight by an external body.

Perhaps the strongest criticism for the introduction of such new technology in an Irish context came from the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, which has been vocal in its reservations regarding bodycams in the past.

Doireann Ansbro, the organisation’s head of policy and legal, said that the ICCL “seriously questions” the proposed expansion of such surveillance technology to a police force which is currently subject to ongoing inquiries by the DPC regarding its compliance with data protection law.

Those inquiries predominantly involve certain local authorities in collaboration with the gardaí introducing CCTV with automatic number plate recognition capabilities around the country.

“We have previously expressed our opposition to the introduction of body-worn cameras for the gardaí given the risks to privacy and data protection and the glaring absence of conclusive evidence from other jurisdictions that they contribute positively to policing or justice outcomes,” Ms Ansbro told the committee.

She said her organisation is calling for the introduction of bodycams for gardaí to be abandoned, or alternatively “for more research to demonstrate they are necessary in Ireland, including a pilot programme”.

For its part, the Department of Justice, the body sponsoring the legislation, said that it is “the Minister’s intention that this will be a strong and effective piece of legislation that will provide the gardaí with additional powers, but will also contain considerable safeguards and protections for the citizen”.

“Some people will have concerns about the contents of this bill,” assistant secretary with the Department Rachel Woods said. “But there is no reason to be concerned,” she added.