For Heads-of · Practitioner
Real-time public biometric identification
Real-time remote biometric identification is used in publicly accessible spaces for law enforcement purposes, outside the three narrow statutory exceptions.
- critical
- prohibited-practice
- biometric
- law-enforcement
- eu-ai-act
How it happens
A law enforcement body deploys real-time facial recognition or similar biometric identification against a public space, a street, a stadium, a transport hub, without falling within one of the three narrowly defined statutory exceptions: targeted victim search, prevention of a specific threat to life, or investigation of a specific serious crime.
Why it matters
This is the most contested of the eight prohibitions precisely because of how easily 'exceptional' use creeps toward routine use; the narrowness of the exceptions is the entire point, and is the first thing to erode under operational pressure.
Mitigating controls
The controls that address this risk, ranked by effectiveness.
No controls mapped to this risk yet.
Framework and clause references
| Framework | Clause | Title |
|---|---|---|
| EU AI Act | Article 5(h) | Real-time remote biometric identification |
Related resources
The external sources behind this risk, from the Resources library.