ACT police and the Australian Federal Police have temporarily suspended the use of the commercial New Zealand-developed Auror surveillance platform until a privacy assessment has been finalised.
The decision was made after a freedom of information request found the platform and its database had been used by AFP staff from 2021.
This is despite that in the same year, the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner found the federal police failed to complete a privacy impact assessment (PIA) before using a facial recognition tool known as Clearview AI, in breach of the Australian agencies' privacy code.
While Clearview and Auror perform different roles, both are valuable surveillance tools for police and incorporate machine learning.
One of the most useful Auror capabilities is its integration with Automated Number Plate Recognition, which is used extensively by ACT police.
While Auror cannot access the police number plate database, it can compile its own and track vehicles which could be linked to repeated offences such as professional shoplifting, which has become a multi-billion loss-maker for supermarkets, major retail and hardware stores.
In May this year, ACT Chief Police Officer Neil Gaughan told a Senate Estimates hearing that his officers had used the software in relation to "recidivist crime offending".
Retailers who use the software can input the details of potential offenders, including hair colour, age, as well as details of the event, drawing from images, CCTV footage, and licence plate information.
Using machine learning, the software then matches profiles and images to help aid retailers and law enforcement in identifying possible offenders.
So far this year, ACT police have recorded 600 shoplifting offences, with 179 in March alone. Around 1200 shoplifting offences are recorded each year in Canberra.
Supermarket giant Woolworths lost over $719 million nationally to theft over the past 12 months, with the ACT having the highest national average theft rate per store.
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