Facial recognition tech to be used at festival

Live Facial Recognition (LFR) technology will be used at Leeds Festival for the first time this year to help prevent crime and keep revellers safe.

The technology - which compares live camera images against a watchlist of wanted or dangerous individuals - will be deployed around the perimeter of the festival, and any "alerts" would be dealt with by specialist officers, West Yorkshire Police said.

Leeds Festival will take place between 26 and 30 August at Bramham Park and is attended by up to 90,000 people every year.

A force spokesperson said it wanted to "work in partnership to identify those who might seek to use the event as an opportunity to commit crime or cause harm".

The force said LFR had already been used across West Yorkshire, including in Leeds, Bradford and Wakefield city centres, as well as at major events.

Ch Insp Dan Tillett said: "Our priority is for everyone attending Leeds Festival to experience a safe and enjoyable event.

"Live Facial Recognition will form part of the wider safety operation at Bramham Park and will be used to help us prevent crime, safeguard the public and identify people who are wanted by police or who may present a risk to others.

"We are committed to using the technology responsibly, lawfully and transparently as a targeted policing tool to help make Leeds Festival as safe as possible for everyone attending."

Meanwhile, police said on Monday a man had been arrested on suspicion of domestic stalking after officers used LFR in Huddersfield for the first time.

A suspect wanted on warrant and a shoplifter were also arrested with the help of facial recognition tools last week.

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