Facial recognition audit logs/usage statistics (Metropolitan Police Department)

This is an automated message from the DC Government FOIA system. Dear Todd Feathers, Request Number 2020-FOIA-05891 has been assigned to the request you submitted in relation to: Request description: To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the DC Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:

1) Copies of all user guides, handbooks, technical manuals, or comparable documents in the department's possession regarding department employee use of facial recognition system(s). These systems are commonly provided by vendors including, but not limited to, NEC, Dataworks Plus, Clearview AI, Cognitec, and others. The entirety of this request should be construed to include facial recognition systems provided by commercial vendors or developed internally.

2) Copies of all audit logs for the department's facial recognition system from Jan. 1, 2020 until the date this request is processed. Facial recognition vendors commonly include daily, weekly, or monthly audit log capabilities in their products and the U.S. Department of Justice recommends that all law enforcement agencies maintain audit logs for facial recognition systems (see: https://it.ojp.gov/GIST/1204/Face-Recognition-Policy-Development-Template-For-Use-In-Criminal-Intelligence-and-Investigative-Activities).

3) All reports detailing aggregated usage/transaction statistics for the department's facial recognition system from May 1, 2020 until the date this request is processed. Commercial facial recognition systems include the ability to easily view these daily, weekly, or monthly aggregate reports, which often detail the number of queries per day, number of daily users, number of photographs/facial templates uploaded to the database, etc. If the department's facial recognition system provides options for the time period covered in the aggregate usage or transaction statistics, I ask that you provide daily reports (rather than hourly, weekly, monthly, etc.)

4) Any documents (this includes screenshots of program dashboards) detailing the number of photographs or facial templates included in the database linked to the department's facial recognition system as of the date this request is processed.

I ask that all fees be waived as I am a journalist (examples of my recent work can be found at toddfeathers.com) and I intend to use the requested records to publish articles in the public interest and not for any commercial purpose.

The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 15 business days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

Todd Feathers

Upload documents directly: https://https://www.muckrock.comhttps://accounts.muckrock.com/accounts/login/?url_auth_token=AAAVLaR50UI9LAIrJLVbEMzyFG8%3A1jjTYS%3A6MdLkDk In all future correspondence regarding this request, please reference request number 2020-FOIA-05891. To check for status, please log in  https://foia-dc.gov/palMain.aspx and go to Request Status. For any questions regarding your request, please contact the FOIA office directly. Find the list of agency Open Governement and FOIA contact information by visiting FOIA Contact Information. For ease of reference, we ask that you have your FOIA Request Number available when you contact the FOIA office. (https://dc.gov/node/818962) Regards,
DC Government FOIA Portal Having technical difficulties? Email FOIA.SystemAdmin@dc.gov or call 202-478-5973

Dear Mr. Feathers, This office is in receipt of your Freedomof Information Act (FOIA) request. Your FOIA request number is 2020-FOIA-059891and your assigned FOIA Specialist is Kimberly Robinson. If youhave any questions regarding your request, please contact your assigned FOIASpecialist at (202) 727-3721.  For ease of reference, we ask that you haveyour FOIA Request Number available when you contact our office. Please know, pursuant to D.C. Official Code §2-532(c), we have 15 business-days, subject to the possibility of a ten (10)business day extension to respond to the request as of the date ofreceipt. Be advised, if your requestis for Body Worn Camera (BWC) footage, D.C. Code § 2-532(c) allows 25business days subject to the possibility of 15 working-day extension, torespond to the request as of the date of receipt. COVID-19Notification Pursuantto section 503 of the COVID-19 Response Emergency Amendment Act of 2020,effective March 17, 2020, D.C. Act 23-247, all FOIA deadlines may beextended during the public health emergency declared by the Mayor. Regards, Latrina Crumlin Staff Assistant,Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Office MetropolitanPolice Department 300Indiana Avenue, Rm 4153

This is an automated message from the DC Government FOIA system. Dear Todd Feathers, The status for your request is below. Please log into https://foia-dc.gov/palMain.aspx and go to Request Status. If you have any questions regarding the status of your request, please contact the agency's FOIA office that you had submitted your FOIA request to. You can communicate directly with the FOIA office by clicking on Inbox, search the request number, and then click Compose Message. OR, visit to see a list DC Government FOIA Office’s/officer’s contact information and have your Request ID ready. (https://dc.gov/node/818962) Contact FOIA Office Request status: In Process Request ID: 2020-FOIA-05891 Description: To Whom It May Concern:Pursuant to the DC Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:1) Copies of all user guides, handbooks, technical manuals, or comparable documents in the department's possession regarding department employee use of facial recognition system(s). These systems are commonly provided by vendors including, but not limited to, NEC, Dataworks Plus, Clearview AI, Cognitec, and others. The entirety of this request should be construed to include facial recognition systems provided by commercial vendors or developed internally.2) Copies of all audit logs for the department's facial recognition system from Jan. 1, 2020 until the date this request is processed. Facial recognition vendors commonly include daily, weekly, or monthly audit log capabilities in their products and the U.S. Department of Justice recommends that all law enforcement agencies maintain audit logs for facial recognition systems (see: https://it.ojp.gov/GIST/1204/Face-Recognition-Policy-Development-Template-For-Use-In-Criminal-Intelligence-and-Investigative-Activities).3) All reports detailing aggregated usage/transaction statistics for the department's facial recognition system from May 1, 2020 until the date this request is processed. Commercial facial recognition systems include the ability to easily view these daily, weekly, or monthly aggregate reports, which often detail the number of queries per day, number of daily users, number of photographs/facial templates uploaded to the database, etc. If the department's facial recognition system provides options for the time period covered in the aggregate usage or transaction statistics, I ask that you provide daily reports (rather than hourly, weekly, monthly, etc.)4) Any documents (this includes screenshots of program dashboards) detailing the number of photographs or facial templates included in the database linked to the department's facial recognition system as of the date this request is processed.I ask that all fees be waived as I am a journalist (examples of my recent work can be found at toddfeathers.com) and I intend to use the requested records to publish articles in the public interest and not for any commercial purpose.The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 15 business days, as the statute requires.Sincerely,Todd FeathersUpload documents directly: https://https://www.muckrock.comhttps://accounts.muckrock.com/accounts/login/?url_auth_token=AAAVLaR50UI9LAIrJLVbEMzyFG8%3A1jjTYS%3A6MdLkDk Regards,
DC Government FOIA Portal

Re:  FOIA Request No. 2020-FOIA-05891
Dear Mr. Feathers,
Please find attached the response to the above-referenced FOIA request.
Thank you.

This is an automated message from the DC Government FOIA system. Dear Todd Feathers, The status for your request is below. Please log into https://foia-dc.gov/palMain.aspx and go to Request Status. If you have any questions regarding the status of your request, please contact the agency's FOIA office that you had submitted your FOIA request to. You can communicate directly with the FOIA office by clicking on Inbox, search the request number, and then click Compose Message. OR, visit to see a list DC Government FOIA Office’s/officer’s contact information and have your Request ID ready. (https://dc.gov/node/818962) Contact FOIA Office Request status: Closed Request ID: 2020-FOIA-05891 Description: To Whom It May Concern:Pursuant to the DC Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:1) Copies of all user guides, handbooks, technical manuals, or comparable documents in the department's possession regarding department employee use of facial recognition system(s). These systems are commonly provided by vendors including, but not limited to, NEC, Dataworks Plus, Clearview AI, Cognitec, and others. The entirety of this request should be construed to include facial recognition systems provided by commercial vendors or developed internally.2) Copies of all audit logs for the department's facial recognition system from Jan. 1, 2020 until the date this request is processed. Facial recognition vendors commonly include daily, weekly, or monthly audit log capabilities in their products and the U.S. Department of Justice recommends that all law enforcement agencies maintain audit logs for facial recognition systems (see: https://it.ojp.gov/GIST/1204/Face-Recognition-Policy-Development-Template-For-Use-In-Criminal-Intelligence-and-Investigative-Activities).3) All reports detailing aggregated usage/transaction statistics for the department's facial recognition system from May 1, 2020 until the date this request is processed. Commercial facial recognition systems include the ability to easily view these daily, weekly, or monthly aggregate reports, which often detail the number of queries per day, number of daily users, number of photographs/facial templates uploaded to the database, etc. If the department's facial recognition system provides options for the time period covered in the aggregate usage or transaction statistics, I ask that you provide daily reports (rather than hourly, weekly, monthly, etc.)4) Any documents (this includes screenshots of program dashboards) detailing the number of photographs or facial templates included in the database linked to the department's facial recognition system as of the date this request is processed.I ask that all fees be waived as I am a journalist (examples of my recent work can be found at toddfeathers.com) and I intend to use the requested records to publish articles in the public interest and not for any commercial purpose.The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 15 business days, as the statute requires.Sincerely,Todd FeathersUpload documents directly: https://https://www.muckrock.comhttps://accounts.muckrock.com/accounts/login/?url_auth_token=AAAVLaR50UI9LAIrJLVbEMzyFG8%3A1jjTYS%3A6MdLkDk Regards,
DC Government FOIA Portal

Re: FOIA Request No. 2020-FOIA-05891

Dear Mr. Feathers:

Please find attached the response to your above-referenced FOIA request.

I have attempted to email you on a number of occasions at the email provided with no success. I am hopeful that this time is successful.

Sincere regards,

Kimberly Robinson
FOIA Specialist
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Office
Metropolitan Police Department
Office: (202) 727-3721
Kimberly.robinson@dc.gov<mailto:Kimberly.robinson@dc.gov>

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