Concerns raised about facial recognition technology in UK shops that alerts police

New technology in UK shops will soon be able to immediately inform the police if known criminals are present. However, groups that protect people's rights are worried this is a dangerous increase in surveillance in shops.

Facewatch is a system used by over 100 businesses, including major supermarkets like Sainsbury’s, B&M, and Spar. It helps them watch for thieves. Now, the company is introducing a new feature that will instantly notify the police when the system identifies someone with a serious criminal record.

The chief executive of Facewatch, Nick Fisher, explained that this new technology will be available in the autumn. He said it would take about four seconds for police to be warned when a person considered a 'worst offender' is detected by the system.

Groups that defend civil liberties have expressed their alarm. They believe this development has moved too fast, without enough rules, and is changing how retail crime is handled. Charlie Whelton from Liberty commented that this new system is untested and not transparent. He also stated that facial recognition technology has been allowed to spread without any real rules to control it.

Whelton added that it is not illegal to enter a shop even if someone has committed crimes before. He finds the idea of calling the police on someone who has not committed a crime but might be suspected of doing so to be a worrying change in how things are done. He also pointed out that these systems are not perfect and can make mistakes, which is difficult to dispute when it happens to you.

Some people have already been asked to leave shops because Facewatch incorrectly identified them as shoplifters. They have described the experience as feeling like they are guilty before being proven innocent. There is also evidence suggesting that people from black and Asian backgrounds are more likely to be wrongly identified by this technology compared to white people.

Britain’s official bodies that monitor biometric technology have also warned that the national oversight of facial recognition is not keeping up with how quickly the technology is being used by police and in the retail industry.

Sarah Lasoye, from the Open Rights Group, stated that the technology is creating an atmosphere of constant monitoring in public life. She believes it is a violation of data and privacy rights. She finds it concerning that people’s faces are being scanned without their permission and added to lists. The speed at which this technology now allows someone to encounter the police while shopping is a very dangerous escalation.

Lasoye also argued that the technology does not address the real social and economic reasons behind shoplifting. Instead, she feels it unfairly targets working-class communities. Sainsbury’s plans to use this technology in more than 200 stores by the end of the year, showing its likely expansion.

Facewatch reported that it warned retailers nearly 300,000 times in the first half of 2026 that a 'known repeat offender' had entered a store. They claim their system helps staff intervene before theft, abuse, or violence can occur. Official statistics show a large number of shoplifting offences in England and Wales, and the retail industry has warned that theft and violence are increasing significantly.

However, some experts argue that using facial recognition technology in shops to catch shoplifters is an excessive measure. Nuala Polo from the Ada Lovelace Institute suggested that there are simpler, less intrusive ways to catch shoplifters without scanning millions of faces daily, often without people's consent. She is concerned that government plans for regulating this technology will not include the private sector, creating a gap where risks are managed in one area but not another.

The campaign group Big Brother Watch has criticised the police for becoming involved with what they call a 'cowboy operation'. They warned that people could be wrongly matched against secret lists created by businesses and security guards who are not accountable.

Nick Fisher of Facewatch defended the system, stating that tackling retail crime requires a combined effort from government, police, retailers, and businesses. He emphasised that the technology is aimed at prolific offenders responsible for a large amount of crime, not ordinary shoppers. He believes that if the technology can help protect retail workers and support policing, it has a responsible role to play.