Over 50 years ago 2001: A Space Odyssey introduced the world to HAL-9000, a computer with artificial intelligence capabilities, including facial recognition technology. It seemed other-worldly, advanced, and somewhat hard to comprehend.
Today, facial recognition technology (FRT) is, for an alarming number of us, a part of everyday life. From opening up our phones and logging into online banking to having our faces scanned against criminal databases, FRT has grown at an exponential rate. Experts have even predicted that the global facial recognition market will more than double from 3.8 billion USD in 2020 to 8.5 billion USD in 2025.
But just how widespread is facial recognition technology within each country?
To get a better perspective, our team of researchers has analyzed the top 100 most populated countries around the world for their use of FRT within the government, police, airports, schools, banking, workplaces, and on buses and trains. We score each country from 0 to 5 points in each category, with 5 being no evidence of use/banned and 0 being invasive use.
North Korea was previously omitted due to lack of clear data, but this year we were able to find several reputable sources for it. However, this update no longer includes Serbia, as Togo has surpassed it in population size.
In this update, we’ve found an alarming increase in the use of the technology across all sectors. And, while the ‘usual suspects’ make the top 10 for the most invasive use of this technology, so too do the likes of the UK, US, Canada, and Australia. In fact, UK saw one of the biggest declines in its score this time around. This is, in part, due to the introduction of live-feed FRT body cameras now in place across a number of police forces and the use of AI tech in a number of train stations.
Key findings
Of the 100 countries we found data for:
- Only 3 countries had no evidence of facial recognition use. But, this is likely due to budgets/lack of technology as opposed to strict legislation/opposition to the technology.
- Only 2 countries in the world are known to have banned facial recognition – Belgium and Luxembourg (the latter isn’t part of our study).
- The European Parliament recently introduced restrictions on facial recognition in its Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act). This creates certain bans, such as creating facial recognition databases by scraping images from CCTV or the internet and preventing law enforcement access to the tech except in specific circumstances, e.g. a terrorist attack or search for a missing person. Many have criticized the adopted legislation as it fails to protect migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers.
- Three-quarters of governments are using FRT on a large-scale basis.
- 75 percent of police forces have access to some form of the technology.
- 68 percent of countries have facial recognition in some airports.
- 25 percent of countries have facial recognition in some schools.
- 80 percent of countries are using FRT within some of their banking/financial institutions
- Around 40 percent of countries have implemented FRT within some workplaces
- 24 percent of countries have FRT on some buses, while nearly 40 percent have it on some trains/subways.
The top 10 countries with the most widespread and invasive use of facial recognition
Each country was scored out of 40, with higher scores indicating no or less invasive use of FRT and lower scores highlighting more widespread and invasive use. The following countries received the lowest scores:
- China = 5 out of 40: It’s little surprise that China tops the list with it being frequently quoted as the largest purveyor of facial recognition technology. Its government and police use the technology extensively and often with invasive surveillance tactics. For example, police in some parts of Liaoning Province are reportedly making North Korean defectors download a facial recognition app so they can send daily selfies every morning. This is being done in a bid to prevent them from traveling to South Korea. And children don’t escape the privacy-threatening technology, either, as schools frequently use the tech to see how attentive students are. If the children appear unfocused, this is then reflected in their grades.
- Russia = 8 out of 40: Russia’s appearance toward the top of the list is perhaps no surprise, either. With facial recognition evident in all of the categories we covered, Russia is another country that’s turning toward facial recognition in many different areas. Mass surveillance in Russia has been expanding at an exponential rate since the Ukraine invasion. Over the last few years there have been numerous examples of protestors being arrested through the use of FRT. They include Andrey Chernyshov, who was arrested numerous times at the metro station in Moscow throughout 2023 after protesting against the Ukraine war. Last year, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) also ruled that Russia’s use of FRT to arrest a protester in 2019 (also traveling on the subway in Moscow) was unlawful.
- The United Arab Emirates = 9 out of 40: As with many of our top 10 countries, the UAE is rolling out facial recognition across many areas to help “speed up processes” and “eliminate fraud.” From using the technology to gain access to government services and public transport to registering attendance at schools, its use across the UAE is widespread. The police in Abu Dhabi had their patrol cars upgraded to include FRT in a bid to help them identify “suspicious and wanted people.”
- The United Kingdom = 11 out of 40: Rising from 11th to 4th place this year is the United Kingdom. The country has seen a rise in biometric surveillance across four categories. This includes the worrying growth of FRT in the government and by law enforcement, including the introduction of live facial recognition bodycams by a number of UK police forces. The technology is increasingly used schools and on trains. A recent report from Network Rail highlighted how travelers using a number of stations, including Manchester Piccadilly, London Waterloo, and London Euston, as well as smaller stations, had their faces scanned for the last two years with Amazon AI software.
- Brazil, Chile, India, Japan, and the USA = 12 out of 40: All of these countries have some use of FRT (or FRT is in discussion) across all of the categories we studied. The US saw the most significant increase in the tech, with lowered scores across five different categories. The only place where it still hasn’t been properly implemented is on buses. However, this looks set to change as a recent announcement suggests it’s coming to LA Transit after a passenger was fatally stabbed. In Brazil, almost 40 cities are now said to be using FRT for public safety, border control checks, and transportation. Chile, India, and Japan also see widespread surveillance across the government and law enforcement sectors with growing use in schools, workplaces, and on buses.
- Australia and North Korea = 13 out of 40: Several years ago, the Australian police were revealed to be using the controversial facial recognition technology from Clearview. The government is also expanding its use of the tech alongside the country’s national ID. While this will help citizens verify their identity with ease, there are concerns over how it could also be used for increased surveillance. North Korea’s use of FRT in the government and police sectors is nothing short of invasive. The country keeps investing in advanced Chinese technology, increasing its surveillance network to further tighten control over its citizens. We couldn’t find evidence of FRT on buses, however.
- Mexico = 13 out of 40: In Mexico, FRT is in use across all of the categories we covered. Government and law enforcement have widespread access, while there is growing use in airports, schools, workplaces, and on trains and buses.
- Argentina and South Korea = 16 out of 40: In Buenos Aires, reports suggested that FRT was linked to a database that included juvenile suspects. There have also been several stories of people being wrongfully detained following incorrect identification through the real-time facial recognition system. FRT is in most other areas within Argentina (aside from buses and schools). South Korea hasn’t implemented FRT in its schools yet, either, but we noted a growing amount of the tech on public transport this time around. This includes for surveillance purposes as well as for contactless payments.
- France, Hungary, Malaysia, and Canada = 17 out of 40: All four of these countries have facial recognition technologies within every category bar one. France and Hungary have no known FRT in schools, while Canada and Malaysia appear not to have installed FRT on buses. All also have widespread or growing use of FRT in the government, police, banking, and within airports, with the tech also growing across public transport systems. Of particular concern is Canada’s use of FRT for border control and immigration. For example, the Canada Border Services Agency has plans to implement an FRT app that will not only trace people who have been deported from the country but may also be used for foreign nationals and permanent residents who are subject to inadmissibility hearings.
- Philippines and Taiwan = 18 out of 40: At present, there is no known facial recognition technology within workplaces in the Philippines or on buses in Taiwan. In this update, we found talks of increasing surveillance in Filipino schools and growing use on buses in the Philippines. Furthermore, the Taiwan Railways Administration is noted as having installed FRT cameras across its network. At this moment in time, FRT isn’t activated but the capability is available.
You can find all of the countries’ scores by category in the table below.
Which countries were the “best in class?”
As mentioned previously, there were a handful of countries where there is no evidence of FRT being in use. However, this may be due to a lack of funding and technology within the area. These countries include Cuba, Haiti, and Syria.
The EU’s recent restrictions on facial recognition via the AI Act are to be commended, but this still isn’t without its gray areas and lack of coverage. Belgium should also be applauded for its ongoing ban on FRT. However, even there, police are permitted to use FRT in certain legal cases, albeit with greater restrictions/requirements than most other countries.
Nearly 8 in 10 governments use FRT on a large-scale basis
The vast majority of countries (83 percent) have some government use of facial recognition. What’s more, most of them have growing, widespread, or invasive use of the technology.
The worst countries are China, Russia, North Korea, Belarus, Ukraine, Uganda, Israel, Egypt, Venezuela, and Myanmar, where FRT is being used extensively and with invasive outcomes. In these countries, the technology is frequently used to single out certain minorities, monitor citizens’ day-to-day activities, and is often used with little or no oversight.
Amid political turmoil, Russia, Ukraine, and Israel have seen a significant rise in the (mis)use of facial recognition technology. And, despite the longstanding efforts of Belarus and North Korea’s oppressive regimes to conceal the extent of public surveillance, we have finally gained some insights into FRT advancements in these two countries as well.
Around 75 percent of police forces have access to some form of FRT
Our research showed that 75 percent of police forces globally have access to some form of FRT. And the majority of those that do have access to the tech do so on a growing or widespread basis.
Seven countries – China, Russia, North Korea, Ukraine, Argentina, Belarus, and the Dominican Republic – have invasive police use of FRT, as seen in our top 10 analysis. The majority of countries where police have no access to FRT are located in Africa. However, with many of these countries having government access to the technology and/or Safe City schemes being implemented, many of these police forces may invest in the technology in the near term.
Around 65 percent of countries have facial recognition in some airports
Over 20 percent of countries have widespread use of facial recognition technology within airports, be this border control and/or check-in processes. A further 46 percent have growing use, while a handful are in the process of testing the technology. As with the majority of FRT, those that lack this technology within airports likely do due to funding/technology issues rather than restrictions around its use.
Around 25 percent of countries have facial recognition in some schools
FRT within schools is growing with 25 percent of the countries we studied having implemented it in some form or other.
The fact that countries like Australia, Canada, and the US, have growing use of the technology within schools suggests that this may become the norm within other countries in the not-too-distant future.
80 percent of countries use FRT within some of their banks
The vast majority of countries have FRT within banking facilities, whether this be for logging onto banking apps, making payments, opening accounts, or providing proof of life.
As you can see from the above map, the use of FRT for banking services is widespread in the majority of American, Oceanian, Asian, and European countries, with no evidence of use in most Northern African countries.
Over 40 percent of countries have FRT implemented within some workplaces
In nearly half of the countries we studied, FRT within the workplace is growing. For example, in the United States, there has been a sharp rise in the number of private businesses using this tech. And, without a comprehensive data protection law in place within the US, this leaves its use open to abuse and employees without adequate privacy safeguards.
In contrast, the United Kingdom saw a positive move when the Information Commissioner’s Office issued an enforcement notice to a large company that operates leisure facilities (Serco) over its use of facial recognition and fingerprint scanning. It ruled that Serco had failed to establish an appropriate lawful basis when processing this special category of personal data. This provided a valuable insight into the lawful use of biometrics at UK companies.
Almost 25 percent of countries have FRT on some buses
Nearly 1 in 4 of the countries we looked at have FRT on some of their buses, with six of these countries already having widespread use of the technology on this form of public transport. These countries are Brazil, China, Kazakhstan, Spain, the United Arab Emirates, and South Korea.
In Brazil, a growing number of cities have implemented FRT as a way to reduce ticket fraud. This includes the cities of Curibita, Salvador, Porto Alegre, and Brasilia. This is also the case in Dubai in the UAE.
In Spain, Madrid’s South Bus Terminal sees 20 million visitors each year. The FRT there checks all passengers’ faces against a criminal database.
In Kazakhstan and China, facial recognition is used for bus fare payments. South Korea has also started using the technology to monitor passenger behavior and to ensure security on buses and trains.
Nearly 40 percent of countries have FRT installed on some trains
Over a third of surveyed countries have FRT installed on some train services, with nine having widespread use and two having invasive use. The latter is made up of the UK and Iran, who use the technology to track and predict passenger ages, genders, and even emotions and to enforce hijab, respectively.
Facial recognition technology presents a growing threat to citizens’ privacy
As FRT expands at an exponential rate, it’s crucial legislation keeps up with it. But, in many countries, there aren’t adequate laws to protect citizens against the abuse of FRT. Some countries may have “biometrics” included within their data privacy laws but many countries don’t specifically address FRT and its use within their legislation. And, as we’ve already seen, only Belgium and Luxembourg have introduced bans or restricted its use.
Methodology
Our study covered the top 100 most populated countries in the world. This year we included North Korea, which previously was excluded due to a lack of data being available. We then searched through news websites, government sources, and other authority websites to find the use of FRT across nine categories.
Each category was scored from 0 to 5.
0 = Invasive use (use that severely encroaches upon citizens’ privacy)
1 = Widespread use
2 = Growing use or some evident use
3 = Testing the technology and/or have restrictions in place
4 = Discussing the technology but no tests or installations in place
5 = No evidence of use
While we have covered every category in detail, it is possible that FRT may be in use in a category and this hasn’t been publicized or discussed.
To differentiate between police and government use, we looked at Safe City policies and/or biometric IDs, voter registration, and other public services that use FRT for government use and focused on specific police use of the technology (e.g. installation within cities, body cameras, car cameras, or other cameras that are used solely by the police). In some cases, police may have access to the images/cameras in use by the government, but unless specific sources of police use were found, the scores haven’t been carried over into this category so as to avoid duplication.
For a full list of sources, please request access here.
Data researcher: Danka Delić
