Havering: Romford Town facial recognition leads to 6 arrests

Havering Romford Town facial recognition leads to 6 arrests
Credit: thehaveringdaily

Havering (Parliament Politics Magazine) –  Havering officers conducted a Live Facial Recognition operation in Romford Town centre this week, leading to six arrests for burglary, and robbery.

This technology keeps Londoners secure and will be used to track down those who have pending arrest orders from the courts, as well as those who threaten or injure others.

Havering’s Safer neighbourhood Superintendent Simon Hutchison said:

“Our teams are working tirelessly to remove high harm offenders from our streets. With the help of modern technology, we are committed to deterring criminals from coming into the town and will have no hesitation in arresting individuals and putting them in front of the courts. We will continue to strive to make Havering a safer place to live, work and visit.”

What feedback have residents of Romford given about the use of facial recognition technology?

The public seems to approve the employment of LFR for law enforcement. According to a survey, 72% of respondents thought LFR should be used consistently in high-crime areas, and 82% thought it was acceptable for police to deploy.

Privacy considerations are weighed against public acceptance. Some people prefer that LFR be used carefully, that its usage be transparent, and that they have the option to object to the processing and storage of their facial photos.

High rates of misidentification have been observed in London facial recognition technology trials. A 96% rate of “false positives,” in which the program incorrectly classifies people as possible criminals, was reported in one study.

According to studies, women and members of minority ethnic groups may be disproportionately misidentified by the technology, increasing the possibility that they may be mistakenly detained and interrogated.

Concerns that innocent persons protesting the technology are being considered as possible suspects have been raised by instances of people being stopped for wearing hoods or hiding their faces in locations where facial recognition technology is in use.

Citing facial recognition as a privacy concern, civil rights organizations are opposing it.

Daniele Naddei

Daniele Naddei is a journalist at Parliament News covering European affairs, was born in Naples on April 8, 1991. He also serves as the Director of the CentroSud24 newspaper. During the period from 2010 to 2013, Naddei completed an internship at the esteemed local radio station Radio Club 91. Subsequently, he became the author of a weekly magazine published by the Italian Volleyball Federation of Campania (FIPAV Campania), which led to his registration in the professional order of Journalists of Campania in early 2014, listed under publicists. From 2013 to 2018, he worked as a freelance photojournalist and cameraman for external services for Rai and various local entities, including TeleCapri, CapriEvent, and TLA. Additionally, between 2014 and 2017, Naddei collaborated full-time with various newspapers in Campania, both in print and online. During this period, he also resumed his role as Editor-in-Chief at Radio Club 91.
Naddei is actively involved as a press officer for several companies and is responsible for editing cultural and social events in the city through his association with the Medea Fattoria Sociale. This experience continued until 2021. Throughout these years, he hosted or collaborated on football sports programs for various local broadcasters, including TLA, TvLuna, TeleCapri, Radio Stonata, Radio Amore, and Radio Antenna Uno.
From 2016 to 2018, Naddei was employed as an editor at newspapers of national interest within the Il24.it circuit, including Internazionale24, Salute24, and OggiScuola. Since 2019, Naddei has been one of the creators of the Rabona television program "Calcio è Passione," which has been broadcast on TeleCapri Sport since 2023.