The Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada has developed draft privacy guidance for police agencies’ use of FRT, with a view to ensuring any use of FRT “complies with the law, minimizes privacy risks, and respects privacy rights”. The Commissioner is undergoing consultation in relation to this guidance.
Privacy International and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association (“CCLA”) welcome the Commissioner’s efforts to strengthen the framework around police use of facial recognition, and the opportunity to contribute a human rights perspective to the consultation. In our response we highlight the concerns about FRT that our investigation and advocacy work has revealed over the years, and recommend that (1) the question of the place of FRT in democratic societies be debated instead of rubber-stamping its deployment, and (2) any safeguards be strengthened in particular on transparency, accountability and oversight.
