00:00Kent Police are trialling new technology as part of their plans to tackle antisocial behaviour in Chatham.
00:06Currently on loan from Essex Police, live facial recognition cameras have been placed on the streets to help find specific
00:12people.
00:13Since May, Kent Police say they've seen a decrease in antisocial behaviour in the area, but think facial recognition is
00:19the next step.
00:20We've caught lots of shoplifters, violent crime offenders, some sex offenders.
00:25We have caught people dealing class A drugs. Lots of success, but we're really, really keen to take this to
00:32the next level.
00:32Chatham is one of the most deprived wards in the country. There are issues there that we need to tackle.
00:38Of that there's no doubt. Whilst crime is coming down, we think there's still work to be done.
00:42When someone on the police watch list walks by the cameras, an alarm goes off.
00:49And their image appears on screen.
00:51An officer compares the two images and, if they match, proceed with the appropriate checks.
00:57But with the possibility of technological mistakes, how do they ensure accuracy?
01:01The machine may make an error. We are fully accepting that it may get it wrong, which is why there
01:06is a human element in the chain.
01:07The important bit for me is the machine is not telling police officers what to do.
01:10There is a lot of checks and balances in place here to make sure that we are doing the right
01:14thing for the right reason
01:15and get catching on with the bad guys or returning people to where they need to be.
01:18Two vans with cameras will be in Chatham Town Centre today and tomorrow,
01:22with signs making members of the public aware of their presence and hopes are up that the system works.
01:28So I've just been kicked out of the police van because their cameras and their system have just received a
01:33hit.
01:34And what that means is that their cameras have recognised somebody on the high streets
01:37who's on their list of people that they're looking for.
01:40With Chatham having some of the highest rates of antisocial behaviour in the county,
01:44do local residents agree with the cameras?
01:47I'd say if they know the police are there, people are going to be less likely to misbehave.
01:53So I'd say it'd be quite good.
01:54There are kind of questions about sort of security and kind of privacy,
01:59but I think that all of those are well dealt with on a sort of ethical and legal level.
02:03Well, it just seems another way of recording people's details
02:09without necessarily getting their consent.
02:11The vans will be returned to Essex Police after the trial.
02:14But if successful, conversations will be had about the future of facial recognition in Chatham.
02:19And with public opinion divided, it's a conversation that will be closely monitored.
02:24Naila Mohamed for KMTV in Chatham.
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