The Hong Kong police recently applied for HK$360 million ($46 million) funding to establish a central digital image platform for storing evidence. When responding to a question from a legislator, Secretary for Security Chris Tang confirmed that the new platform would include facial recognition features in the future.
In the post-National Security Law era, the Hong Kong authorities’ stance on facial recognition systems has evolved from initially denying or being evasive and hastily clarifying when questioned to openly stating that they do not rule out adding such technology.
AI and Facial Recognition On the Plan
On May 7, during the Panel on Security to the Legislative Council, when asked whether the authorities would consider the use of AI or facial recognition capabilities on the platform, Mr. Tang said the platform would add these capabilities later.In January, Deputy Chief Secretary Warner Cheuk stated that the authorities would install 2,000 CCTV cameras across Hong Kong, citing the need to prevent crime.
HK Police Allegedly Used Facial Recognition For Years
However, a Bloomberg report during the Anti-Extradition Movement in 2019 said that the Hong Kong police had already used AI technology with facial recognition capabilities for at least three years. The Australian tech company iOmniscient provided the software and trained dozens of Hong Kong police officers.The software could process any video, including CCTV footage, and automatically scan faces in the video to match them with police databases, according to the report.
iOmniscient refused to comment on the topic, stating that its technology also has the capability to keep identities anonymous for uses such as crowd control. Its systems are used in over 50 countries, and Hong Kong accounts for only a small part of its overall operations.
Lampposts Suspected of Facial Recognition Capabilities
During the Anti-Extradition Movement, some citizens suspected that smart lampposts in the city had facial recognition capabilities and could become surveillance tools.On Aug. 24, 2019, one of the themes of the Kwun Tong march was opposing the lamppost surveillance system. Protesters pulled down at least five smart lampposts and found components from Chinese surveillance equipment manufacturers.
Back then, the Office of the Government Chief Information Officer published the locations, functions, and equipment lists of the 50 installed smart lampposts.
‘LeaveHomeSafe’ App Suspected of Facial Recognition
In January 2020, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department issued a statement in response to online rumors that the department was collecting personal data through network cameras equipped with facial recognition.The department stated that the installed network cameras did not have facial recognition features, that they were primarily used to monitor illegal dumping hotspots to deter such activities, and that video footage that did not involve suspicious cases would be deleted about one month after being reviewed.
‘Lawlessness’ in Current Hong Kong
Hong Kong Center for Human Rights, a group founded in 2022 by human rights defenders with a background in policy and legal research, has raised concerns about the use of AI and facial recognition technologies.“The Hong Kong authorities have been introducing AI and facial recognition technology under the guise of crime investigation. However, the methods of use and data storage are privacy-related issues. It is concerning that the public can no longer monitor how the government and law enforcement departments use the collected data,” a spokesperson for the organisation told The Epoch Times. “The situation raises suspicions that the authorities might not only be investigating crimes but also collecting data on individuals in specific areas during sensitive times and analyzing it with AI.”
The spokesperson noted that what happened in Xinjiang shows that facial recognition technology leads to pervasive surveillance and comprehensive monitoring. However, it is difficult to gauge whether Hong Kong has undergone “Xinjiang-ization.” The increasing adoption of such technologies by the Hong Kong authorities without monitoring mechanisms is alarming and has caused a chilling effect among the public.
The organization believes that the Legislative Council currently lacks opposition parties, resulting in a severe lack of mechanisms to oversee the police.
Once something is classified under “national security,” it cannot be monitored, leading to a situation of “lawlessness” that causes significant human rights violations, according to the spokesperson.