Concerns over facial recognition at river festival

More than 250,000 visitors are expected at Bedford's River Festival this weekend

A police force has been criticised for introducing facial recognition technology for the first time in its county at a riverside festival.

Bedfordshire Police said the technology would be used "in a bid to locate the county’s most wanted offenders and keep the public safe" at this weekend’s Bedford River Festival which attracts more than 250,000 visitors.

The technology works by using a camera to scan faces to match biometrics against those held on a watch list.

Campaign group Liberty said its use in Bedfordshire was "of grave concern", but police said they adhered "to strict guidelines to ensure privacy protection".

A debate also broke out on social media, with comments on the force’s Facebook page both in support and critical.

It isn't the first time the technology has been rolled out at public events.

Neighbouring force Northamptonshire Police has used facial recognition at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone since 2023.

A facial recognition camera in action

Sam Grant, director of advocacy at Liberty, said: “Live facial recognition (LFR) is an unregulated mass surveillance tool which changes what it means to walk down the streets, pop to the shops, or enjoy music at festivals."

He said "too little is known" about how police forces are using the technology.

"The expansion of this technology to Bedfordshire Police is of grave concern," he added.

Bedfordshire Police said LFR locations at the festival would be "clearly marked" and specially trained officers would review any matching images.

It said any images that triggered an alert would be deleted immediately after use or within 24 hours.

The force admitted that "historically there have been issues” with LFR and “potential gender and ethnic bias".

However it said "as the technology has developed over time this bias has reduced greatly."

Bedford Borough Council supports the police's decision to use facial recognition technology at the River Festival

Detective Superintendent Aman Dhaliwal, leading LFR for Bedfordshire Police, said:

"Although we have many years of experiences leading policing operations at various large-scale events, each year brings its own challenges and we’re thankful to be able to harness technology such as this for the sole purpose of fighting crime and protecting people."

A spokesperson from Bedford Borough Council added: "We are pleased to support Bedfordshire Police in their deployment of live facial recognition technology at the Bedford River Festival.

"This innovative approach not only enhances security but also provides reassurance to the public."