Volume 21
March 2018 Edition
The Truth about Law Enforcement ’ s Use of Facial Recognition Technology
By Roger Rodriguez , Director of Business Development at Vigilant Solutions , a 2017 ‘ ASTORS ’ Homeland Security Award Winner
We all know that technology and automation make us more efficient in our lives and our jobs – think of the way you save a few precious seconds by telling your mobile device to dial a phone number instead of manually pushing buttons .
As a retired police officer , I have been alarmed to see comments in recent months by privacy activists , and even some policymakers , suggesting that it should be harder for law enforcement to use technology to do their jobs more efficiently .
Facial recognition is an important crime-fighting technology – yet certain groups and media outlets have deemed it a law enforcement surveillance tool that infringes on privacy .
This is not correct .
The reality is that facial recognition is a proven technology that helps investigators prevent and solve crimes .
It is not used to continuously surveil the public or target specific groups , as has some have suggested .
Law enforcement officials use it to more efficiently solve crimes , ensuring public safety and ultimately saving lives .
Here ’ s how it works :
• Facial recognition software quickly compares one face with a lot of other faces to see if there is a potential match .
That ’ s it .
Cops do the same thing every day in a manual way , by knocking on doors with a photo , or having crime victims look through hundreds of mugshot photos ; facial recognition just automates the process .
The technology does not replace anything in criminal investigations except for time and effort – and when used properly , it is a valuable tool in the investigative process that can generate a strong investigative lead .
I recently spoke at the Biometrics for Government and Law Enforcement conference in Washington , DC , and the more I speak at these events and around the country , the more I realize that there are many misconceptions about biometric facial recognition technology .
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