The Indian police used facial recognition technology to identify 25 protesters, who were allegedly in jail, among those present during a youth protest at Jantar Mantar. The police did not specify if these individuals were accused, convicts or just named in criminal cases.
According to The Indian Express, the facial recognition software identified 2,873 persons with alleged criminal records among those present during the youth protest at Jantar Mantar on July 20. Among them, 25 were in jail according to police and court records when they were spotted during the protest. The police had submitted this data to the Supreme Court on August 17 during a hearing in a case alleging excessive force against protesters.
The Indian Express investigation revealed that out of the 25 individuals allegedly in jail but present at the protest site, 17 face charges of murder, four of rape and four more of attempt to murder. The police told the court that 'no actions are taken solely based upon the result of the facial recognition system'. After field verification, action is taken if it is found during the process that the person was present at the site.
In 2022, the police said they considered a match 'positive' if the facial recognition system achieved an accuracy rate of 80%. This could depend on various factors such as the algorithm, camera angle, lighting, image quality, masks and the database being searched. It is important to note that the police did not specify if those identified were accused, convicts or just named in criminal cases.
In response to The Indian Express' questions about the findings, the police said on Friday that further investigation was pending. The Union government had moved the Supreme Court on Monday seeking to quash all first information reports filed in connection with the youth protests. However, it said that it would continue the investigation against the 2,873 persons with criminal records at the protest site.
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