Delhi Police told the Supreme Court on August 18 that it used facial recognition technology (FRT) at the recent Cockroach Janta Party protests only to identify individuals with existing criminal records, not to surveil the entire crowd, according to medianama.com. The police made this claim during a hearing before a bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant.
The police's explanation was challenged by petitioners' lawyers who argued that facial recognition systems must first capture every face in view before matching any to a database. The Internet Freedom Foundation outlined that FRT works in three steps: detecting faces, extracting faceprints, and matching these against a database. This process requires detecting all faces before identification can occur, raising questions about the police's claim of selective scanning.
This case highlights concerns over privacy and the scope of surveillance during protests. The police have not clarified what happens to the faceprints of individuals not matched to criminal records—whether they are stored, discarded, or logged. The issue is significant given the potential for mass data collection and the implications for civil liberties, especially during public demonstrations.
The Supreme Court bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice V Mohana continues to hear the petition on surveillance at the Cockroach Janta Party protests, as reported by Bar and Bench on August 18.