Live facial recognition cameras to be used by WA Police in Australian first

Col Blanch says WA people will be safer with the use of live facial recognition technology. (ABC News: Callum Liddelow) A marked police van will be used outside major events or in crowded areas to live scan the faces of people walking past, in an Australian first. The faces of people will be matched against a database of people with outstanding arrest warrants and registered child sex offenders, as well as missing persons. While the trial only includes one marked van, the police commissioner is not ruling out further covert technology being used in the future, including at protests. Link copiedShareShare articleWestern Australia will become the first place in the country where police will trial real-time facial recognition cameras, scanning crowds for people wanted by police, registered child sex offenders and missing persons. The cameras, which will be deployed in a marked police van outside major events or in crowded areas, will scan faces to be cross referenced with a database of targets. Police Commissioner Col Blanch said that database will contain about 4,000 people with outstanding arrest warrants and thousands of registered child sex offenders, as well as people reported missing. Live facial recognition cameras are set to be used at major events in WA or in crowded areas. (ABC News: Callum Liddelow) The commissioner said signs alerting the public to the cameras would be clearly visible. "This is about specifying those in our community who are wanted by police." The cameras could be deployed in entertainment zones like Northbridge and at events at Perth Stadium. (ABC News: Keane Bourke) If the technology detects a match, the image will be retained and an alert sent to nearby officers to confirm the person's identity. Commissioner Blanch said while his force had used facial recognition technology on already obtained footage for more than a decade, it was the first time in Australia police had used live feeds for almost-instant facial detection. A marked police van will be used in the trial, with standalone cameras able to be deployed from the van. (ABC News: Callum Liddelow) He sought to quell concerns about potential breaches of privacy. "CCTV cameras are everywhere. They are owned by private businesses, local councils, they are around the world ... and who are they owned by, no-one would know," he said. "They capture information of everyone, they store pictures of everyone — for how long, I don't know. Police say images of people not on the database will be deleted almost immediately and will appear pixelated, even for officers monitoring the technology. (ABC News: Callum Liddelow) "This technology here pixelates those who are not on the list, does not store information, deletes it immediately. Bunnings was reasonably entitled to use the technology to combat crime and staff abuse, the Administrative Review Tribunal finds. While this trial only includes one marked van, he did not rule out covert technology being used in the future, pointing to the force’s existing use of facial recognition systems. "We already use facial recognition in a capacity that is not overt. We already do that," the commissioner said. He said he wanted to the community to feel comfortable with the technology. "We want the conversation and that debate to continue," the commissioner said. The van will be fitted with clear signs which the Commissioner expects could deter people who would be recognised. (ABC News: Callum Liddelow) "This is how we intend to keep our community safe. Let's have that conversation first before we decide to go any further." Commissioner Blanch said private companies were already using live facial recognition. In November 2025, the commissioner revealed police had access to private cameras recording the number plates of vehicles entering the car parks at a Westfield shopping centre in Perth's south. Elsewhere in Australia, the national privacy commissioner found Bunnings had in 2024 breached the privacy of potentially hundreds of thousands of Australians through the use of facial recognition cameras to scan every customer on entry in an effort to reduce theft. However, the ruling was later overturned, potentially paving the way for other major retailers to embrace the technology. The privacy commissioner also found Kmart had breached Australians’ privacy by collecting their personal and sensitive information through a facial recognition technology system designed to tackle refund fraud. Kmart was found not to have notified shoppers or sought their consent to use the technology to collect their biometric information. Commission Blanch said it was not his "intent" for the technology to be used at protests "except if we have intelligence that there is a significant risk of someone seeking to do harm". But he said that could be the case at the upcoming Land Forces defence expo, which Perth will host in October, if police had intelligence of a threat to that event. If the tec

Live facial recognition cameras to be used by WA Police in Australian first

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