cars in traffic

Axon Brings License Plate Recognition Technology, and Self-Regulation, To Police Dash Cameras

Alongside its announcement about adding ALPR to its cameras, Axon’s independent ethics board issued a report calling for government and industry regulation of the technology.

Axon, a key manufacturer of body and dashboard cameras for law enforcement agencies as well as the Taser, announced on Wednesday that it will incorporate automated license plate recognition (ALPR) into its next generation of dash cameras.

Accompanying the announcement was an unusual action by a major security technology company: a critical report issued by its independent AI and Policing Technology Ethics Board, which the company created last year. In the report issued Wednesday, the ethics board advocated for greater regulation of ALPR technology, going on to acknowledge its usefulness in public safety while pointing out concerns around its unregulated use.

The board, which appears to be housed at the New York University Policing Project, said that the technology has the potential to “exacerbate enforcement of low-level offenses” and runs the risk of “false positives and long-term tracking of innocent drivers.” In addition, the report found that there is little public information about how police departments actually use ALPR data, making it difficult to measure the potential pros and cons of Axon’s entry into the market, TechCrunch reported.

Some of the board’s recommendations included immediate self-regulation by vendors, including Axon, and law enforcement. In practice, this recommendation means design modifications to improve transparency, limiting ALPR use to prosecute low-level offenses, and offering opportunities for the public to weigh in on ALPR use in their communities.

In addition, the report called for federal, state and local governments to step in and develop statutes for ALPR technology that would make its use by police more transparent.

Barry Friedman, a NYU law professor and a member of the ethics board, said in a statement that the unregulated use of ALPR has made millions of people subject to surveillance by law enforcement.

“The danger to our basic civil rights is only increasing as the technology is becoming more common,” Friedman said. “It is incumbent on companies like Axon to ensure that ALPRs serve the communities who are subject to ALPR usage. This includes guardrails to ensure their use does not compromise civil liberties or worsen existing racial and socioeconomic disparities in the criminal justice system.”

For its part, Axon said in a press release that it plans to work with the board, public safety leaders and “diverse community leaders” to develop a framework for law enforcement agencies to deploy the technology. That framework will be consistent with the recommendations put forth by the board, Axon CEO and founder Rick Smith said.

“We embrace that we have an ethical obligation to develop this technology thoughtfully and bring new privacy safeguards to the industry,” Smith said. “While building ALPR, we'll be addressing items such as data retention and data ownership, creating an ethical framework to help prevent misuse of the technology."

In response to the board’s recommendations regarding data storage, Smith added that the company has never sold public safety data and has no plans to do so.

About the Author

Haley Samsel is an Associate Content Editor for the Infrastructure Solutions Group at 1105 Media.

Featured

  • Allegion, Comfort Technologies Implement Mobile Credentials at the Artisan Apartment Homes in Florida

    Artisan Apartment Homes, a luxury apartment complex in Dunedin, Florida, recently transitioned from mechanical keys to electronic locks and centralized system software with support from Allegion US, a leading provider of security solutions, technology and services, and Florida-based Comfort Technologies, which specializes in deploying multifamily access control, IoT devices and software management solutions. Read Now

  • Mall of America Deploys AI-Powered Analytics to Enhance Parking Intelligence

    Mall of America®, the largest shopping and entertainment complex in North America, announced an expansion of its ongoing partnership with Axis Communications to deploy cutting-edge car-counting video analytics across more than a dozen locations. With this expansion, Mall of America (MOA) has boosted operational efficiency, improved safety and security, and enabled more informed decision-making around employee scheduling and streamlining transportation for large events. Read Now

  • Security Industry Association Launches New “askSIA” AI Tool

    The Security Industry Association (SIA) has unveiled a brand-new SIA member benefit – askSIA, a conversational AI agent designed to help users get the most out of their SIA membership, easily access SIA resources and find the latest information on SIA’s training and courses, reports and publications, events, certification offerings and more. SIA members can easily find askSIA by visiting the SIA homepage or looking for the askSIA icon in the top left of webpages. Read Now

    • Industry Events
  • Industry Embraces Mobile Access, Biometrics and AI

    A combination of evolving workplace dynamics, technology innovation and new user expectations is changing how people enter and interact with physical spaces. Access control is at the heart of these changes. Combined with biometrics and AI, mobile access control has become increasingly crucial for deploying entry solutions that are seamless, secure and adaptive to user needs. Read Now

  • Sustainable Video Solution Delivered for Landmark City of London Office Development

    An advanced, end-to-end video solution from IDIS, with a focus on reducing waste and costs, has helped a major office development in the City of London align its security with sustainability objectives. Read Now

New Products

  • Camden CM-221 Series Switches

    Camden CM-221 Series Switches

    Camden Door Controls is pleased to announce that, in response to soaring customer demand, it has expanded its range of ValueWave™ no-touch switches to include a narrow (slimline) version with manual override. This override button is designed to provide additional assurance that the request to exit switch will open a door, even if the no-touch sensor fails to operate. This new slimline switch also features a heavy gauge stainless steel faceplate, a red/green illuminated light ring, and is IP65 rated, making it ideal for indoor or outdoor use as part of an automatic door or access control system. ValueWave™ no-touch switches are designed for easy installation and trouble-free service in high traffic applications. In addition to this narrow version, the CM-221 & CM-222 Series switches are available in a range of other models with single and double gang heavy-gauge stainless steel faceplates and include illuminated light rings.

  • Luma x20

    Luma x20

    Snap One has announced its popular Luma x20 family of surveillance products now offers even greater security and privacy for home and business owners across the globe by giving them full control over integrators’ system access to view live and recorded video. According to Snap One Product Manager Derek Webb, the new “customer handoff” feature provides enhanced user control after initial installation, allowing the owners to have total privacy while also making it easy to reinstate integrator access when maintenance or assistance is required. This new feature is now available to all Luma x20 users globally. “The Luma x20 family of surveillance solutions provides excellent image and audio capture, and with the new customer handoff feature, it now offers absolute privacy for camera feeds and recordings,” Webb said. “With notifications and integrator access controlled through the powerful OvrC remote system management platform, it’s easy for integrators to give their clients full control of their footage and then to get temporary access from the client for any troubleshooting needs.”

  • Automatic Systems V07

    Automatic Systems V07

    Automatic Systems, an industry-leading manufacturer of pedestrian and vehicle secure entrance control access systems, is pleased to announce the release of its groundbreaking V07 software. The V07 software update is designed specifically to address cybersecurity concerns and will ensure the integrity and confidentiality of Automatic Systems applications. With the new V07 software, updates will be delivered by means of an encrypted file.