The Future Of Facial Recognition Technology Depends On This Case's Judgement

What is the case?

It is the first time that UK police defended how they have used the facial recognition technology in court.

The court is raised by Ed Bridges – an office worker in Britain. He said that police in South Wales used the facial recognition technology to him more than 2 times without his consent. In his opinion, his human right was contravened, which will be shown in the court lasting 3 days in Cardiff on May 21. In case Bridges wins the case, the use of facial recognition technology in the future may be different.

What happened?

According to Bridges, his first facial scan took place in Cardiff at the time of his shopping in the last month of 2017.

Sharing with BBC News, he said while leaving the office to go to buy something for Christmas, he saw a police van. When he saw the words ‘automatic facial recognition’ on the car, he knew he had already scanned.

He claimed that his privacy was violated seriously.

Another scan is said to happen when he took part in a peaceful campaign which is about protesting arms.

Is there a precedent?

Gaining support from Liberty- a UK organization that aims to protect human rights, Bridges opened a crowdfunding campaign in a bid to sue the UK police.

In a press release, Liberty lawyer named Megan Goulding stated:

In the UK, it is the first time for a case against the use of facial recognition technology. Therefore, if Bridges win the case, it may change the future of this technology. This precedent will affect law enforcement of facial recognition technology not only in the UK but also over the world.