In his classic novel, 1984, George Orwell imagined how Britain might one day become a totalitarian surveillance state.
Yet as Orwell's novel celebrates its 75th anniversary this month, British police are already deploying technologies that would put Big Brother to shame.
From the facial recognition cameras watching you shop to the algorithms predicting crimes before they happen, these tools feel as if they've been ripped from the pages of science fiction.
But there is nothing fictional about the AI cops already patrolling Britain's streets - and experts say there is only more to come.
Jake Hufurt, head of research and investigations at Big Brother Watch, warned MailOnline: 'We're sleepwalking into a high-tech police state.'
Live facial recognition, as the name suggests, allows the police to recognise wanted individuals among a large crowd in real time.
Police use a series of cameras to record the faces of anyone who passes through a set zone.
An algorithm then compares the faces of those walking in front of the camera to a 'watchlist' of wanted criminals and an alert is generated if the AI spots a match.
Since 2015 several police forces across the UK have begun to use this technology in public places as part of targeted crackdowns and to police busy events.
However, London's Metropolitan Police and South Wales Police have been among the keenest adopters of the technology.
This year alone South Wales Police have already deployed eight live facial recognition zones including at a Six Nations Game and a Bruce Springsteen concert.
In total, these deployments scanned the faces of 156,032 people but only led to a single arrest being made.
Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Police have already deployed live facial recognition a staggering 73 times this year, recording 146,157 faces and leading to 209 arrests.
The police and Home Office argue that these large-scale surveillance operations are justified by their results.
1 comment:
From the archives - January 1, 1968. President Johnson makes an announcement about his intent to ask for Congress to restrict travel by Americans due to a crash program meant to reduce the payment deficit balance. More like a crash program to restrict travel by emigrating Americans opposed to his policies especially the disastrous Vietnam War. An imperial president imposing his lethal will on young Americans and tearing up the constitution with a feckless bootlicking Congress in tow.
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