Automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras photograph and
read vehicle number plates and are already in operation. Local
authorities and police have expanded the number of cameras and a
national database for the images captured by the cameras will go
live at the end of the year.
The Guardian newspaper obtained Home Office
correspondence which says that data gathered by cameras and stored
in the database will be kept for up to five years.
Privacy International has complained to the Information
Commissioner's Office (ICO) about the retention of the information
for that period.
The ICO is responsible for monitoring compliance with the Data
Protection Act (DPA), which says that data should not be stored for
longer than necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was
gathered.
"The ICO recognises that automatic number plate recognition can
assist in the detection and prevention of crime, however it is
important that where large amounts of personal information are
collected and retained adequate safeguards are in place to protect
individuals’ privacy," said an ICO statement.
"The principles of the Data Protection Act clearly state that
personal information should only be stored for as long as is
necessary," it said. "Any prolonged retention would need to be
clearly justified based on continuing value not on the mere chance
it may come in useful. We take all complaints seriously and will be
contacting the relevant organisations to discuss proposed data
retention periods.”
ANPR cameras are also used in London to track compliance with
that city's congestion charges. Last year the Metropolitan Police
were granted an exemption from the Data Protection Act by Home
Secretary Jacqui Smith.
That exemption allowed camera operator Transport for London to
pass on real-time data from the cameras to police and allowed
police to use the data irrespective of DPA restrictions as long as
the use was for the protection of national security.
In 2006 the Chief Surveillance Commissioner Sir Andrew Leggatt
warned that ANPR cameras may qualify as covert surveillance and be
illegal. He said in his annual report that unless the legal status
of the surveillance carried out by the cameras was clarified
prosecutions depending on ANPR evidence could fail.
"The unanimous view of the Commissioners is that the existing
legislation is not apt to deal with the fundamental problems to
which the deployment of ANPR cameras gives rise," he wrote in his
report to the Prime Minister and to Scottish Ministers. "The
Commissioners are of the view that legislation is likely to be
required to establish a satisfactory framework to allow for the
latest technological advances," he wrote.
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