Although the British court considers similar cases unlawful, such as in 2012 court ruling when the Metropolitan Police was obliged to delete two photos from their database, the police forces insist that the new database fully complies with the UK's Data Protection Act.
Biometrics Commissioner Alastair MacGregor told the BBC Newsnight that the system might have implications for privacy and civil liberties.
Several British members of parliament, including Liberal Democrat David Laws, are demanding urgent action to regulate the use of the database, according to the BBC.
A number of police forces in the United Kingdom have adopted facial recognition technology despite concerns over the system’s reliability. It is widely used by the Metropolitan Police, Leicestershire Police, UK Border Agency, British security agencies and airport security.
