The trial has now concluded
The Western Australian Police Force has now concluded its five-month trial of Overt Live Facial Recognition (OLFR) technology, with more than 120 people arrested during that period.
The trial commenced on Monday 22 June 2026, with the capability rolled out to prevent and detect crime, find wanted and dangerous criminals, safeguard vulnerable people, such as children, and to protect people from harm, keeping the community safe.
Throughout the trial, visible facial recognition cameras, mounted on or positioned in the vicinity of a marked police vehicle were deployed in designated public spaces.
The cameras detected faces in real time and compared them against a strictly controlled alert list consisting only of lawfully held police images. Images of community members who were not on the alert list were automatically pixelated in real time and were not saved. There was no record-keeping of this data.
Operational activity ceased on Saturday 31 October 2026 following 100 deployments across 43 different locations in both regional and metropolitan areas.
During those deployments, the technology scanned 1,380,882 faces, generated 292 alerts, including 9 incorrect alerts (0.00065%), reflecting a high level of system accuracy.
A total of 146 Registered Sex Offenders (RSO) were identified through Offender Management Division list alerts and subsequently engaged by officers.
A breakdown of results can be found below:
- 1,380,882 faces scanned.
- 292 alerts generated.
- 122 arrests in total.
- 146 Registered Sex Offenders identified and engaged with.
- 10 persons identified to ascertain their welfare.
- 9 incorrect alerts (0.00065%).
The OLFR capability conducted three deployments at the Perth Royal Show, scanning 223,749 faces and generating 15 alerts. Three people were arrested and seven Registered Sex Offenders were identified and engaged with during these deployments.
The trial will now transition into an internal evaluation, examining system performance, operational effectiveness, community impact, and governance and compliance.
Technological advances, including live facial recognition, offer significant opportunities for law enforcement agencies to enhance community safety, which remains the number one priority.
Facial recognition has been successfully implemented in other jurisdictions worldwide, improving community safety.
Working to keep you safe
The Live Facial Recognition (LFR) technology trial helped to identify and locate identified persons of interest and to protect vulnerable people.
We are committed to being open and transparent about how LFR technology is developed, deployed, and used. Maintaining the trust of our communities is essential as we introduce this new and important tool to support public safety.
What is Live Facial Recognition?
Live Facial Recognition (LFR) uses cameras to detect faces in real time.
When someone walks into the camera’s view, in a defined area, the system detects their face, creates a biometric template based on their features and checks this against a list of people police are looking for.
If the system thinks someone might match a person on the list, it generates an alert.
Police officers then review the alert and decide, based on the alert, their observations and any other relevant information, whether to speak with the person or take any further action.
How we trialled Live Facial Recognition
- A marked police van with clear signage and LFR technology was deployed to a location.
- The system scanned faces in real time and compared them against a predetermined alert list.
- When a match was generated, officers assessed the alert and engaged the individual to verify the alert before taking appropriate action.
- When there was no match, no data was stored by Police, the data was deleted automatically and immediately.
When we used Live Facial Recognition technology, we recognised there is an ongoing need to balance privacy and protection concerns, in addition to considering its legal and ethical implications.
Deployment register
Reporting by district - statistics (PDF, 110KB)
Frequently asked questions
Trial information
Show moreWhat is the purpose of the live facial recognition trial?
The technology is a precision crime-fighting tactic aimed at improving public safety, reducing harm in our community, and preventing crime. It has been proven in other police jurisdictions to help police officers operate more efficiently to locate people they are lawfully trying to find.
The LFR trial aims to support police in finding and managing high-risk individuals within busy public spaces and identifying and locating people more quickly when needed.
Implementation and use
Show moreAll LFR deployments are conducted in accordance with WA Police Force Overt LFR Standard Operating Procedures.
Where is Live Facial Recognition (LFR) technology used?
LFR is used in intelligence-led and time-limited deployments. All deployments are overt and occur in public spaces where LFR has the greatest potential to assist the WA Police Force in fulfilling its operational duties.
Extra scrutiny is applied before authorising deployment near locations where there may be community sensitivity, such as hospitals, schools, and places of worship. An Equality Impact Assessment (PDF, 577KB) will guide police in mitigating impact with our community.
How will I know if an LFR deployment is in operation?
During deployments, overt awareness measures are used, so the public can identify that LFR is in use and understand the nature of the operations.
These will include signage, posters with QR codes for links to further information. This webpage will provide notice ahead of deployments.
Who is on the alert-list used during an LFR deployment?
The alert-list consists of lawfully held images of people of interest to police, including individuals wanted for outstanding warrants, persons suspected of serious offences, individuals subject to lawful restrictions, missing persons, and persons who may pose a risk to themselves or others.
What happens if someone triggers an alert through LFR?
Every alert is checked by police officers before any action is taken. Considerations include how similar the images are, the similarity score, and environmental and technical factors. If appropriate, a police officer may speak with the individual to confirm their identity.
An alert is not, by itself, grounds to arrest or exercise powers.
Incorrect alerts are reviewed as part of post-deployment analysis.
What happens to images of people who are not on the alert-list?
Where no alert is generated, no information is stored; all derived data is immediately and automatically deleted.
Legislative framework and governance
Show moreIs live facial recognition legal?
Yes. LFR operates consistent with existing policing powers and the legal frameworks concerning taking images of people in public places. LFR is subject to privacy, equality, and data protection obligations.
Each deployment will be individually assessed to ensure it is lawful, necessary, and proportionate and then explicitly authorised. Authorisation addresses the policing purpose and ensures compliance with relevant legislation and privacy obligations.
How will the use of this technology be regulated?
Governance includes a rigorous process before, during and after each deployment. Each LFR deployment is endorsed by an Authorising Officer of the rank of Superintendent or above.
Before approving a deployment, the Authorising Officer must consider:
- whether the use is necessary and proportionate
- why the chosen location is appropriate
- what categories of people sought by police are to be included on the alert list
- all relevant assessments and safeguards
The process includes:
- strict approval before deployment
- command roles during deployment
- reporting and review afterwards
Privacy and data handling
Show moreHow is my privacy protected when LFR is used?
LFR is used in line with the WA Police Force Privacy Statement and Privacy Impact Statement (PDF, 571KB). Key protections include:
- where no alert is generated, the system automatically pixelates faces on the operator screen
- biometric data that does not generate an alert is not stored by police; it is deleted immediately and automatically
- biometric data is deleted following each deployment
- details of any alerts are retained, where required for an investigation of an offence or complaint
- no data is shared with third parties
Accuracy and effectiveness
Show moreWhat testing has been done to ensure the technology is accurate?
Police in the UK had the facial recognition algorithm independently performance tested by the UK National Physical Laboratory. It has also been evaluated by the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
Testing shows high accuracy and minimal demographic variation in controlled environments.
A conservative similarity score threshold is used by WA Police Force to minimise incorrect alerts.
What is a similarity score?
This score measures how closely two facial patterns match. A higher score means the faces are more similar; a lower score means fewer similarities. Police set a pre-defined threshold so only strong matches trigger an alert.
What safeguards are in place to prevent bias and incorrect matches?
Safeguards include:
- conservative similarity threshold
- trained operators
- continuous monitoring
- human review of all alerts
- the ability to stop a deployment if appropriate
- evaluation reporting after every deployment
Other information
Show moreHow will the LFR trial be evaluated?
The trial will be assessed against set performance measures, and the results will help inform future decisions about the technology.
Key documents
Equality Impact Assessment Document (PDF, 577KB)
Privacy Impact Assessment Document (PDF, 571KB)
