Watchlist

Summary

The Watchlist section of the College of Policing's Authorised Professional Practice provides guidance on the composition, generation, and management of watchlists for live facial recognition (LFR) deployments. It outlines that the criteria for watchlists must be approved by an Authorising Officer (AO), specific to operations, and must adhere to proportionality and necessity principles. Furthermore, it highlights the importance of using lawfully held images, with clear guidelines on types of images that can be included, considerations for vulnerable groups, and the necessity for continuous review of the watchlist prior to deployment.

Key principles

• 1Watchlists must be operation-specific and approved by an AO.
• 2All images must be lawfully held and relevant to the deployment.
• 3Continuous review of watchlists is essential, especially before deployment.
• 4Special consideration must be given to protected characteristics when creating watchlists.
• 5Images should be the most recent and suitable for recognition to ensure accuracy.

Defined terms

Missing persons deemed increased risk

A definition subject to the College of Policing's parameters for medium risk, meaning that harm to the individual or the public is likely but not serious.

Presenting a risk of harm

Informed by intelligence case assessing an individual's potential risk to self or others, requiring a lawful basis for police action.