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Many police services in Ontario are considering adding ALPR technology to their law enforcement toolkit if they haven’t already done so. This is not surprising, given the Government of Ontario’s 2022 elimination of licence plate validation stickers and the introduction of a one-time grant to acquire or upgrade existing ALPR systems. However, with more ALPR systems, comes greater collection of personal information that police services must be able to legally justify, manage, and protect.
My office first published guidance for police services on the use of ALPR in 2017. A lot has changed since then, as ALPR technology has advanced. ALPR systems, whether fixed or mobile, can become integrated with other surveillance technologies, exponentially increasing risks to Ontarians’ privacy rights. That’s why the IPCO recently updated its ALPR guidance to provide police with recommended best practices for using these newer, more sophisticated systems in a privacy-protective way.
In keeping with our vision of being a modern and effective regulator with real-world impact, we consulted with experts and police services to make sure our updated guidance would be feasible and operational in practice. If we expect police services to meet their obligations under Ontario’s access and privacy laws, then it’s incumbent on us to provide them with relevant, actionable, and up-to-date guidance.
The recommendations in our updated guidance are quite comprehensive. Here are a few key points:
- Before implementing or making any significant changes to an ALPR program, police should begin by conducting a Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA). PIAs are a valuable way to assess the functionality, privacy, security, and transparency of a proposed ALPR program, and to evaluate the necessity for such a program in the first place. The resulting assessment can assist with identifying any adjustments that should be made to key components, including policies and procedures, before launching an ALPR pilot study or full-fledged program.
- In smaller towns and municipalities with few roads, placing fixed cameras on telephone poles or overpasses in central locations can unintentionally create a surveillance-like effect, by capturing repeated scans of the same vehicles — and residents — every time they pass by. Cumulatively, these scans can provide a mosaic of people’s comings and goings and begin to reveal a pattern of their activities over time. That’s one of the reasons our updated guidance recommends a heightened level of privacy protection, by immediately deleting licence plate scans that don’t match an ALPR hotlist. This ensures the focus remains on public safety while minimizing unnecessary data retention and public concerns about mass data collection and surveillance.
- Transparency is key to maintaining public trust. Police vehicles equipped with ALPR should be marked with a notice, and fixed ALPR systems should have signs prominently displayed at the perimeter of monitored areas. Good ways to raise public awareness also include notices in local papers, posts on social media, and regular updates about the ALPR program on the police service’s website.
- Depending on their location, fixed ALPR systems can have a particularly harmful impact on marginalized communities. Placement of cameras in low-income or high-crime areas can lead to biased data collection and disproportionate surveillance of individuals. Without ridding data of this historical bias, individuals may become unfairly subject to heightened police surveillance based solely on inferences made about where they live or which groups they belong to, and not because they pose any greater risk to public safety.
- When deciding on the location of cameras, careful consideration should also be given to their proximity to sensitive sites, such as places of worship, community services or health care clinics. The location of cameras should be routinely assessed to ensure that their presence does not discourage individuals from practicing their religious beliefs or seeking access to the help and services they need. Routine assessment can help reveal any unintentional harmful effects the existence of cameras may be having and determine if their presence in a particular area is still necessary.
- Police services by themselves cannot anticipate all the impacts ALPR systems can have. This is why we strongly recommend they consult with their communities and provide written notice before installing and activating ALPR systems. When communities understand how and why police use ALPR systems, they are more likely to support their implementation and provide valuable input that can enhance their efficacy. Proactive communication about ALPR programs not only builds public trust — it strengthens the effectiveness of policing.
Police services who work with third party vendors to acquire and implement their ALPR systems remain accountable for protecting personal information and complying with privacy laws. When it comes to personal information, you can outsource services, but you can’t outsource accountability. Our accompanying guidance, Privacy and Access in Public Sector Contracting with Third Party Service Providers, provides practical advice to help police services identify privacy and transparency considerations when contracting with third party vendors.
Modern policing is based on trust. ALPR is a powerful tool that can enhance public safety, but its success depends on how well it is governed, communicated, and used in compliance with privacy laws. By implementing strong policies, engaging with communities, and ensuring accountability for third party contracts, police services can use ALPR effectively while maintaining the public’s confidence. The IPC’s updated ALPR guidance offers practical steps to help police services drive public safety forward, without putting the brakes on privacy.
If you have questions about the IPC’s updated ALPR guidance, you can email us at info@ipc.on.ca. Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario has also published guidance on police use of facial recognition technology to search mugshot data bases and body-worn cameras. Our webcast about law enforcement and surveillance technologies brings together experts from the fields of policing, access and privacy law, human rights, and academia. It’s another great way to learn more about this topic.
Patricia Kosseim is the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario. Prior to this role, she gained a wealth of practical experience and in-depth knowledge of access and privacy law issues having worked in the public, private, and health sectors and across several jurisdictions. She holds business and law degrees from McGill University, and a Master’s Degree in Medical Law and Ethics from King’s College, University of London. She is a member of the Law Society of Ontario and the Barreau du Québec.
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Book Review: If They Only Knew: A Cop’s Journey with Addiction and Mental Health
As someone who has worked closely with many police officers for more than two decades and spent five years engaged in doctoral research on what makes police officers “tick,” I have often found that officers find it difficult to talk about personal mental health and addiction issues. I attribute much of that to the deeply engrained police culture that demands “toughness” in the face of what cops deal with “on the job”.
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The Key is Compassion
Shiftwork makes people tired in a way that few things can. Police members and other first responders, who work to promote the safety and well-being of those around them, are well aware of this. However, physical exhaustion is not the only type of fatigue. The emotional load of seeing and experiencing tragedies repeatedly can have long term impacts, including on the ability to feel compassionate.
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Evaluative Thinking about Strategic Business Planning in Policing
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Honouring Canada’s Female Police Officers and Personnel
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FASD-Informed Training for Police Officers
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What We Can Learn in Policing from Wildfires
I had trouble figuring out where to begin this year’s renewed version of the Police Leadership Program. The challenge was too many options. The leadership issues in policing today range all the way, for example, from community mental health to organizational budgeting to technical skill development.
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The Complexity of Police Leadership
Yet leadership effectiveness is, simply put, about people understanding people. It is a skillset that can be learned, and that depends quite simply on leaders investing in themselves. With social-scientific discoveries, self-awareness, and powers of observation and communication, leaders can pull others together around a common goal. Among others, the below three skill sets help to get you there:
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Countering Incivility, Harassment, and Discrimination in Policing
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The Leadership Imperative: Leader development in Ontario
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THE FUTURE OF LEADERSHIP IN POLICING
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Connect, Lead, Inspire
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