VISITORS, workers and residents in Perth CBD — as well as footy fans heading to Optus Stadium — will have their faces scanned by facial recognition cameras to identify troublemakers and wanted offenders on a City of Perth “Black Watchlist”.

The facial identification software — aimed to be rolled out by the end of the year — is so new to our State that even WA Police don’t use the cutting-edge technology.

The City of Perth wants to widen and strengthen its virtual security net with a suite of 30 new “smart” CCTV cameras scattered across East Perth, including six capable of facial recognition.

A cluster of these cameras will be within walking distance of the new Matagarup Bridge across the Swan River to Optus Stadium in a bid to prevent crime and potential terrorist attacks.

The system, revealed in a tender, would check the faces of people passing the cameras against images on the Black Watchlist, which would be created and managed by the city as part of the plan.

This video in the player below, posted by technology company Sentinel, shows how facial recognition might be used to pick people out of a crowd.

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Any person wanted by JU authorities or who is a known troublemaker can be added to the list and be integrated into the city system,

Australian Privacy Foundation chairman David Vaile said serious questions needed to be answered about whether the City of Perth was over-reaching in its role and responsibilities, as well as how this biometric data would be stored and accessed by others. “It’s none of their business trying to be a shadow police force,” he said.

Facial recognition is being trialled by police in London, but an independent review this week found there was a “lack of clarity about the legal basis” for the use of the technology and its regulation.

The City of Perth’s proposal would make it one of the first authorities in WA to use facial recognition. The Australian Border Force employs the technology at Perth Airport’s SmartGate automatic passport checkpoints.

Mr Lumsden said future expansion of facial recognition and smart CCTV cameras throughout the city would depend on “a successful trial and feasibility”.

“Facial recognition technology assists frontline staff in responding faster to potential incidents and undertaking preventative measures ... the city respects the privacy of the community and at all times is aware of its obligations under the Surveillance Devices Act 1998.”

The $1.075 million project, jointly funded by the city and Federal Government, would also count people, vehicles and cyclists, with analytics software capable of predicting anti-social or crowd-crush incidents before they escalate or even happen. These cameras could also track more vehicles using Automatic Number Plate Recognition technology.

The tender document states the project’s objective is to “improve response times, monitor traffic and pedestrian flows and advise the appropriate authorities before any antisocial behaviour escalates”. As well, the system would be open to authorised third parties to interrogate and extract data on request.

The tender call-out also states the system should be able to redirect facial recognition analytics from one city camera to another on demand.

The camera system should be able to detect abandoned items, full or partial number plates, monitor foot traffic in real time, notify surveillance operators if pedestrians start running instead of walking therefore pinpointing potential crowd crush situations, and alert people through PA announcements of blockages, hazards or incidents.

Mr Lumsden anticipated the system would be up and running by the end of the year, saying East Perth was chosen as the smart CCTV hub because of its proximity to Optus Stadium events.

“(Analytics) will improve the ability to detect suspicious or anti-social behaviours and responses by authorities. The benefits of the data will also enhance an understanding about the use of the area and in turn, the data will provide a good reference point toward operational and capital works decisions,” he said.

WA Police do not use facial ID technology, although it is used by CrimTrac, the national information-sharing service. The Public Transport Authority has no plans to use the software. Optus Stadium has the “technical capability”, but is not using the technology.