Sign up to Newsletter

policing and technology graphic

Policing and Technology

Advances in technology significantly advance the capabilities of police, with few safeguards and no transparency.

Learn

Explainer

GPS tracking and COVID-19: A tech primer

Explainer

Push This Button For Evidence: Digital Forensics

Explainer graphic

Police mobile phone extraction explainer

Explainer

The Global Surveillance Industry

Podcast: Extraction

43m27s

You’re a witness or a victim or a suspect of a crime; or even just travelling going on holiday. Officials demand your phone, then disappear with it. What happened to your phone? What happened to your data? What will happen to you?

We all generate vast amounts of data using our mobile phones -

More

Featured Campaign

Photo by King's Church International on Unsplash
Campaigns

UK Law Enforcement Data Service (LEDS): the new police mega-database

The Home Office is currently developing a UK-wide police 'super-database' containing a vast amount of data, which mixes both evidential and intelligence material. Here is why PI is concerned about LEDS and what we are doing about it.
Read more

Reports and Analysis

Long Read
Drawing of a person buying from a shop

Facewatch: the Reality Behind the Marketing Discourse

As more and more of us feel compelled to cover our faces with masks, companies that work on facial recognition are confronted with a new challenge: how to make their products relevant in an era where masks have gone from being seen as the attribute of those trying to hide to the accessory of good
Continue reading
Long Read
Photo by James Eades on Unsplash

Is over-policing the future?: Development of the UK Law Enforcement Data Service (LEDS)

The Home Office development of the Law Enforcement Data Service (LEDS) is problematic and needs parliamentary oversight. Here's why we are concerned and what we are doing about it.

Continue reading
police serving ice cream
Case Study

King’s Cross has been watching you - and the police helped

Police forces in the UK started trialing facial recognition technology in public events a few years ago, but are taking a step further in the questionable use of this extremely intrusive technology.

Continue reading
View more

News

3rd September 2020

Challenging over-policing: our response to the public consultation on the Law Enforcement Data Service (LEDS)

19th June 2020

IMSI catchers: facilitating indiscriminate surveillance of protesters

18th June 2020

Press release: Critical ICO report says the Police must stop taking data from victims' phones without better safeguards

11th June 2020

Why Amazon's temporary ban of police use of facial recognition is not enough

20th May 2020

French court finds police use of drones to manage Covid-19 crisis unlawful

29th April 2020

Press release: 10 questions to Palantir from privacy organisations

See more

Examples of Abuse

Want to know how this translate in the real world? Here is the latest example in the news.

Despite uncertain benefits, surveillance spreads across the world

At least 27 countries are using data from cellphone companies to track the movements of their citizens, and at least 30 have developed smartphone apps for the public to download. Fewer objections have been raised in countries with greater levels of success in containing the virus. However, although
Read more
See more examples of abuse

Our Advocacy

Cooperating With Who?! Answers Needed as UK Retailer Southern Co-Op Tests Facewatch

Privacy International is seeking answers and assurances from UK supermarket chain Southern Co-Op following its trial of the Facewatch facial recognition network

Read more
View more advocacy