Research will pave way for facial recognition governance in Scotland

The University of Stirling is behind research that will pave the way for facial recognition governance in Scotland.

Face[REC], funded by The Scottish Institute for Policing Research (SIPR), will explore how live facial recognition (LFR) technologies should be administered when used to fight crime.

LFR has been deployed by various police forces in the UK, including the Metropolitan Police and South Wales Police. It allows ‘real-time’ algorithmic use of biometric data to match faces scanned in public spaces.

Police Scotland last year stated its commitment to adopt LFR as an extra tool in policing and public safety. This research will help capture key concerns and priorities around LFR regulation.

Focus on ethics

Dr Diana Miranda of the University of Stirling and Dr Lachlan Urquhart of the University of Edinburgh, both Directors of the Centre for Research into Information, Surveillance and Privacy (CRISP) and experts in biometrics and facial recognition, will combine legal analysis with insights from workshops involving police officers and citizens.

With a focus on the ethics and regulation of LFR, the Face[REC] project will culminate with the design of a physical deck of cards, evaluated in a multi-stakeholder workshop involving policymakers, academics, police, and regulators.

Dr Diana Miranda, Senior Lecturer in Criminology at the University of Stirling, said: “This is a very timely opportunity to not just analyse the fragmented regulatory landscape but also question how the use of LFR in policing addresses citizens’ needs and concerns, and provide practical tools to shape governance strategies now and in the future”.

The University of Stirling and the University of Edinburgh are behind the project, which is receiving £20,000 in funding. The research project runs from now until Spring 2027.

Find out more about Face[REC] here.

Find out about CRISP here.