Moscow to create facial recognition system for security footage streamed from all Russian regions

The Moscow city government’s IT department plans to build a unified system for processing footage from security cameras throughout Russia by mid-December, according to the newspaper Kommersant, which cited a state contract published online. The project will reportedly allow authorities to use Moscow’s facial recognition technology to identify people caught on tape in every region of the country.

“None of [Russia’s federal] subjects have money, a data center large enough to store video, or a centralized solution for video analytics, and Moscow has all of that,” a source close to the IT department reportedly told Kommersant. “It’s not rocket science.”

Another source told the newspaper that the Russian authorities’ interest in “search technology” is growing “because of the difficult political situation and the ongoing military activity in Ukraine. [...] [Facial] recognition is necessary to ensure security.”

Igor Bederov, owner of the company Internet-Rozysk, told Kommersant that video streams from security cameras in Russia’s regions can be used to find both “terrorists” and draft evaders. Still, he said, police will need to have grounds to search the facial recognition system, such as a criminal case.

Thinking inside the box

Increasingly desperate for manpower in recent months, Russian authorities have started tapping a “resource” the country has plenty of: prisoners. If you think that sounds like it would carry obvious risks, you’re right.