ALPR and Privacy: How PULSAR Enhances Security While Protecting Citizen Rights

These days, robust automatic license plate recognition (ALPR) solutions are helping law enforcement protect and serve their communities. This increasingly common technology gives an AI-assisted boost to evidence-collection efforts in vehicle-based investigations. Some citizens have come to see fixed LPR cameras as a surveillance tool – which is not the case – so it’s worth taking time to educate communities about what ALPR does and doesn’t do. 

The case for ALPR technology

When we consider that 70% of crimes involve a vehicle, we begin to appreciate the importance of tools and technology to help law enforcement solve crimes more efficiently and effectively. 

Our ALPR offering, PULSAR by Utility, is one such example PULSAR is an AI-powered license plate capturing and alerting solution that assists in evidence collection and analysis efforts. Even under challenging conditions – like recovering stolen vehicles or solving hit-and-run cases – AI-powered LPR systems like PULSAR can accurately capture passing vehicle details along with the date, time, and GPS location. 

PULSAR allows for fixed (mounted), mobile, or portable deployments, empowering clients to utilize this technology when and where it’s most needed. One PULSAR Fixed camera can capture up to two lanes of vehicle traffic from a single location (e.g., a pole or traffic signal). If one of the passing vehicles is on a National, State, or custom hotlist, Law enforcement agencies receive an alert and can take the appropriate secondary action.  

PULSAR can help law enforcement agencies that want to raise their game regarding vehicle-based investigations while respecting and protecting citizen privacy. 

Dispelling myths about LPR cameras 

Policing works so much better when citizens are partners rather than adversaries. To ensure public trust, we must always protect their rights. Some citizens may view LPR technology as an invasion of privacy, or they may raise red flags around bias or other ethical issues. Law enforcement agencies must be well-versed in Automated License Plate Recognition (ALPR) technology to inform the public and debunk misconceptions effectively. This knowledge enables officers to address community concerns and promote transparency regarding ALPR’s role in public safety. 

Here are a few myths you’ll want to be prepared to counter in your community. 

Myth #1: LPR cameras are used for surveillance.

Truth: LPR cameras are an objective evidence-capturing tool that uses motion detection and AI to determine if and when a vehicle passes by the camera and the camera takes a snapshot of that passing vehicle. 

Myth #2: LPR cameras monitor people 24/7.

Truth: LPR cameras use motion detection technology and AI to determine when a vehicle passes by the camera. When motion is detected, the camera “wakes up” and uses AI to determine if the motion was caused by a passing vehicle. The camera will take a snapshot of the passing vehicle, and when there isn’t any additional motion caused by vehicles detected, the camera returns to its usual dormant state. 

Myth #3: LPR cameras capture names, phone numbers, and addresses and can contribute to racial bias or profiling.

Truth: LPR cameras are installed to capture the rear of a vehicle in the name of providing objective evidence. LPR cameras are not able to detect race or gender or to provide facial recognition. 

This raises another critical point: LPR technology is not the same as facial recognition. They are two completely different technologies. As mentioned, LPR cameras take snapshots of a vehicle’s rear license plates and use AI to extract license plate characters. Facial recognition, on the other hand, focuses on a single face or multiple faces and uses different image databases to identify the person. 

Department handling of LPR data

In addition to concerns around privacy, citizens may wonder what law enforcement does with the data collected by LPR cameras. Is it shared widely? Is it stored forever by a police department? Here’s what you can tell them 

LPR data collected by a specific law enforcement agency remains strictly within that department, used exclusively for legitimate policing activities. To ensure security, all information is encrypted during transmission and storage and maintained in a cloud-based system that adheres to Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) compliance standards. LPR data is only shared with law enforcement agencies for investigative purposes and is never sold to third-party businesses. Data is only made available to personnel with permission to access it and a viable reason for conducting a search is provided. 

Law enforcement agencies only keep LPR data for a set period of time. Each agency can set a data retention period for the LPR data collected. Once that retention period passes, the data is permanently deleted from the platform. This period can range from 30 to 365 days. Any LPR assigned to an active case gets omitted from the retention process. 

Ensuring Ethical Use and Privacy with POLARIS Integration 

Thanks to its integration with POLARIS by Utility™ – our all-in-one digital evidence management (DEM) system for law enforcement – PULSAR helps law enforcement maintain high ethical standards for data management. 

Through POLARIS, PULSAR systems enable seamless access to vehicle license plate data within the agency. This integration streamlines data management and enhances collaborative efforts within the agency. 

Utilizing the strict evidence management controls within POLARIS allows for better oversight and management of the PULSAR data collected. This ensures that the use of PULSAR-collected data is transparent and ethical, addressing public concerns about privacy and building trust between law enforcement agencies and the communities they serve.

For example, law enforcement leaders can use POLARIS to customize their PULSAR data retention. They can assign roles and permissions based on which users need access to PULSAR data. Those users are required to enter a search reason every time a PULSAR based data query is conducted. They can provide audit reporting, showing who is accessing PULSAR data and why. And they can provide a complete chain of custody on all file and case activity when an LPR transaction is added. 

The by-product of all those things? Sensitive LPR data is kept safe and sound, accessible only to those who need to see it. And law enforcement leaders can confidently tell community members they are respecting their privacy while increasing efficiency and community safety. 

Commitment to Privacy and Security

Learn more about how PULSAR and POLARIS by Utility can help your law enforcement agency maintain ethical data practices while enhancing operational efficiency. Contact us today for a demonstration or to discuss how we can support your community’s safety and privacy needs.