High Court to hear legal challenge against Met live facial recognition use
27/01/2026 | Big Brother Watch
The High Court in London is set to hear a landmark legal challenge against the Metropolitan Police Service’s (MPS) use of live facial recognition (LFR) technology on 27 and 28 January 2026. The case, brought by anti-knife crime campaigner Shaun Thompson and Big Brother Watch director Silkie Carlo, alleges that the force's deployment policies breach fundamental human rights.
The claimants argue that the criteria for deploying cameras are excessively permissive, covering broad definitions such as crime hotspots and access routes. Expert evidence submitted to the court suggests that these definitions encompass the majority of public spaces in London, which effectively means that there is no meaningful constraint on mass surveillance in the city. The legal challenge argues that this practice violates the right to privacy under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
Additional reporting by The Telegraph (£) and The National.
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