Live Facial Recognition (LFR) Scheme

Reveal Media has provided GO! Southampton with the cameras and infrastructure for this ongoing deployment of LFR. The system works as follows:

• • Individuals who have been banned from the city centre via our Red Card/Exclusion Scheme or have previously committed an offence in the city will be uploaded daily to the server linked to the cameras. This is the same information that is currently on our DISC portal which GO! Southampton already utilise.
  • Door staff/security in the venues participating in the deployment, who are wearing the body worn video cameras containing the LFR technology, will be alerted when one of the individuals attempts to enter a venue. The camera technology will carry out a check of faces of the individuals on the exclusion list against the person attempting to enter the venue.
• • If the LFR technology recognises the person as being excluded, it will alert the door staff who will carry out further checks and decide what further action to take – including refuse entry. The LFR technology, if a match is suspected, will also automatically turn on the recording function of the body worn video camera to document the interaction with door staff. Door staff will then alert all other venues via our radio scheme that the individual is present in the city – as they will be likely to attempt entry to other venues. The Police and GO! Southampton’s security team are also likely to hear the alert via the radios.
  • The objective will be to prevent individuals from entering the venues or causing further offences/harm inside businesses or outside on the streets.

Live facial recognition uses a computer algorithm to produce a facial template, which is unique to each individual. When the body-worn camera identifies a face in its vicinity, it instantly produces a template which is then compared against a list containing a template of excluded individuals. These individuals represent those who are not permitted to enter a licensed premise in Southampton due to their failure to adhere to the standards of behaviour expected or having committed criminal offences. As soon as the camera identifies a suspected match it will also activate the traditional recording function of the body-worn video camera to document the interaction with the door staff.

Live facial recognition cameras will operate from 20:00 to 02:30 on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights. For further information on which venues are taking part in the trial please see the signage at each venue, which will be clearly marked to the public and displayed in the area where the venues are located. The body worn video cameras that are operating the LFR software will also be clearly marked and identifiable.

The body-worn camera and facial recognition software will still produce a template of your face. Within a few microseconds, this template is compared against the exclusion list stored on the video camera. If it does not detect a match, the template and all personal data is instantly deleted.

The camera will pick up all individuals within a 6m radius who are attempting to enter the venue. There will be posters displayed in the area and door staff will be wearing lanyards who are taking part in the trial.

If you intend to enter one of the licensed premises trialling the facial recognition software, you are likely to have to pass the camera worn by the door supervisor as you enter. If you’re merely walking past the venue, we recommend staying out of the Zone of Recognition, which extends a maximum of 6m in front of the camera worn by the door staff at the venue.

If you are on the exclusion list, your personal data will continue to be downloaded on to the camera for use whilst you are banned from licensed premises. Additionally, when you attempt to enter any of the venues with LFR technology the camera will record this fact in a video footage as well as any interaction with the door staff. For further details, please refer to the privacy notice that has been sent to you or is available on our website.

The exclusion list consists of banned individuals from the Licencing Link Scheme, also known as the Red Card Scheme or Pub Watch. This scheme follows a robust, documented process before adding anyone to the banned list. Every banned individual receives a notice explaining the ban’s terms, how their data is being used, and grounds to appeal a ban. Only after this process is completed are the individual’s photo (and facial recognition template) sent to the body-worn cameras via the dedicated software provided by Reveal Media.

Read more about the Red Card scheme here.

Southampton Business Crime Partnership (SBCP) controls the exclusion list of banned individuals, making them the data controllers. The SBCP is run and managed by GO! Southampton, the Business Improvement District.

Reveal Media are the data processors for the LFR technology as they provide the body-worn video system’s software and hardware.

We have conducted a thorough assessment regarding the legal grounds for using this technology. The LFR technology operates using legitimate interests as the lawful basis under UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018. Comprehensive documentation has been completed and supports this trial.

Key partners in this deployment are Southampton BID, who oversee the Southampton Business Crime Partnership across the city; Synergy Security, who provide the door supervisors at licensed premises taking part in the deployment; Reveal Media, who supply the body-worn cameras and associated software; and finally, the DPO Centre, offering expert advice on data protection regulations and documentation.

Other partners include Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary, Southampton City Council, BID member businesses and SWL Security.

Reveal Media is an established UK company supplying body-worn cameras to the police, retail partners, and healthcare professionals. They are currently the only supplier capable of incorporating live facial recognition technology within their cameras. Reveal Media hold ISO 27001 and ISO 9001 accreditation, as well as Cyber Essentials Plus certification. Find out more about Reveal here.

For further information regarding your personal data and what happens to it in relation to the deployment of LFR technology and capture, please see our privacy notice on our website here: LFR & BWV Privacy Policy March 2024