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The Edmonton Police Service in Canada has begun a trial of facial recognition-enabled body cameras, utilizing technology from US-based Axon. Up to 50 officers are participating in the pilot, with the cameras only activated during active investigations or enforcement. When in use, the cameras capture images within a four-foot radius and send them to a cloud service for comparison against a database of 6,341 flagged individuals. Images not matching the list are deleted, and the database remains under police control, with Axon not having access. This marks a significant shift for Axon, which previously refrained from commercializing facial recognition on bodycams due to ethical and technical concerns. The move has sparked debate, with experts warning that the technology could shift bodycams from tools of accountability to instruments of mass surveillance.
The trial comes after previous controversy involving Axon's ethics board, which saw resignations over the company's pursuit of other surveillance technologies. The deployment of facial recognition in Edmonton is being closely watched for its privacy implications and the potential for broader adoption in law enforcement. Civil liberties advocates and academics have raised concerns about the balance between public safety and individual privacy, emphasizing the need for transparency and oversight in the use of such technologies.
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After the trial, the Edmonton Police Service said it will review the results and decide in 2026 whether to expand use of the facial-recognition-enabled body cameras.
The Edmonton Police Service began piloting Axon body cameras with facial recognition, with up to 50 officers participating. During investigations or enforcement, the cameras capture faces within about four feet and compare them against a police watchlist of 6,341 flagged individuals, deleting non-matches.
In 2019, Axon said facial recognition was not reliable enough for body cameras and raised serious ethical concerns, declining to commercialize the capability at that time.
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