Concerns about the potential use of facial recognition technology (FRT) by An Garda Síochána have been raised by a number of specialist academics who warned of its “chilling effects” and potential social harms.
An Oireachtas committee hearing expert insights on the technology was also told of likely legal challenges should its use be adopted in the context of current draft legislation, and of the importance of judicial, rather than police, oversight.
Although An Garda Síochána has stressed the limitations of its intended application in Ireland, and of its potential to radically improve investigative procedures in crimes including child exploitation, the Oireachtas justice committee was presented with successive witness concerns during a meeting on Tuesday.
“If Ireland goes ahead with this technology it’s just a matter of time before we become a headline,” said Dr Abeba Birhane of the School of Computer Science and Statistics at Trinity College Dublin, who warned of its tendency to err along minority group lines, a common criticism of FRT systems.
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Dr Daragh Murray, senior lecturer at the School of Law in Queen Mary University of London, sought to highlight the potential “chilling effects”.
“Facial recognition represents a step-change in police surveillance capability,” he said, telling the committee he advocated for a moratorium on its use.
“Both live and retrospective facial recognition makes possible the ability to monitor, track and profile large amounts of the population with significant private life implications.”
FRT has prompted ongoing debate in Ireland, since being introduced by Minister for Justice Helen McEntee, primarily along human rights grounds.
It has the ability to sift through thousands of hours of footage at far greater speed than humans.
Ms McEntee has backed its application in the investigation of serious crimes such as murder, child sexual abuse and abductions, and has previously said it is not for the purposes of mass surveillance.
During two sessions of pre-legislative scrutiny on Tuesday, the committee heard input from 10 witnesses, most flagging some form of reservation.
Fianna Fáil Senator Robbie Gallagher said it was “somewhat concerning” the draft Garda Síochána (Recording Devices) (Amendment) Bill had progressed so far given the concerns expressed by various bodies including the Data Protection Commission, the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL), and Digital Rights Ireland (DRI).
Fianna Fáil TD Niamh Smyth similarly said it “would be really important that our Data Protection Commission is truly on-board and feel that this law and legislation is airtight”.
The prospect of legal challenges to the Bill, as it is currently drafted, or unsuccessful prosecutions, were raised by the Law Society of Ireland and DRI.
The Law Society has pushed for its use to be cleared by a District Court judge, an approach comparable to the granting of search warrants. Prof David Kaye of the Irvine School of Law at the University of California also advocated for strict checks and balances to include prior judicial approval.
Dr Nessa Lynch, an expert in biometrics regulation at the Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand said while various risks had rightly been highlighted, there was a wider human rights framework due consideration.
“We do have to reflect on situations where technology such as this can be used in a human rights compliant way where there is a legitimate law enforcement objective,” she said.
The extent of proposed FRT use by An Garda Síochána was played down by its chief information officer Andrew O’Sullivan who told the committee it would be retrospective, and with human involvement, rather than autonomous, machine-led results in real time.
“We have absolutely no intention of doing real time facial recognition; we also have no time at all for autonomous machine decision making,” he said.
“Every decision [during investigations] will be made by a person.”
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