Facial Recognition in Telangana
Information Certainty: Documented
Deployment Purpose: Crime Prevention, Commercial Surveillance
| Summary |
|---|
| 0 |
Products and Institutions:
| Product Deployed | Common Operating Picture Correlation Engine (COPCE) |
|---|---|
| Institutions ⠉ | Unknown Institution 0083 |
| Datasets | Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and System (CCTNS) |
| Search software |
Status and Events:
| Status | Ongoing |
|---|---|
| Events | Start (1 August 2018, Documented, , FRT was launched in August 2018 into the existing set of CCTV cameras) |
| Start Date | |
| End Date |
Users:
| Involved Entities | |
|---|---|
| Managed by | |
| Used by | Hyderabad Police |
Location:
| City | Hyderabad |
|---|---|
| Country ⠉ | India |
Description[ ]
Launched in August 2018, the FRT, by design, requires external cameras to capture sensitive personal data and photographs which are compared with those maintained on pre-existing lists compiled for purposes of either identification or verification of persons. 2
The Hyderabad city police department is known for employing facial recognition for a variety of objectives, including questionable cordon and search operations, profiling people for narcotics, and unlawful phone-searching activities. They claim that facial recognition technology has worked as a "deterrent" and helped them apprehend criminals. 1
Police in Telangana have installed the most CCTV cameras in India, according to the Bureau of Police Research and Development's Data On Police Organizations (DOPO) 2021 report. Telangana leads the country with 2,82,558 CCTV cameras, followed by Tamil Nadu with 1,50,254 CCTV cameras. Telangana accounts for half of all CCTV cameras installed in the country, and also has the largest number of facial recognition technology projects in India, according to a report by the human rights organization Article 19. 1
The underlying architecture of it all is referred to as: The Common Operating Picture Correlation Engine or COP CE—an AI-based integrated safe city solution. COP has been designed to integrate with the core Telangana State Police system “including TSCOP, HawkEye, Safe City Platform with ArcGIS, CCTNS, court systems, traffic systems, cyber and forensic systems, etc". The government calls it an “augmented intelligence integrated solution" that would provide “actionable insights and situational awareness" for field officers to make informed decisions in real-time. 3
The local police were given computer tablets, digital cameras and, in 2018, an app called TSCOP was launched which gave the cops access to the national-level Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and Systems (CCTNS), a database of images and details of known offenders at the central level. 3
References
- a b c "Facial Recognition Is Out of Control in India". (2022) <https://www.vice.com/en/article/akew98/facial-recognition-is-out-of-control-in-india> Accessed: 2022-09-02
- a b "Telangana’s facial recognition technology comes under scanner". (2022) <https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/telanganas-facial-recognition-technology-comes-under-scanner-101641409527024.html> Accessed: 2022-09-02
- a b c "The Hyderabad model of CCTV surveillance". (2020) <https://www.livemint.com/news/india/the-hyderabad-model-of-cctv-surveillance-11604926158442.html> Accessed: 2022-09-02