Chinese police have gone high tech in the fight to catch criminals, donning digital glasses that help them spot suspects in a crowd within seconds.
Transport police in Zhengzhou were given the glasses in preparation for the year's largest migration, The Daily Mail reports.
The Lunar New Year travel rush, due to begin on February 1, is the world's largest annual migration and around 390 million people are expected to travel via train in a six week period.
The Chinese government says the facial recognition software has already helped police to pick seven suspects out of a crowd.
According to the state-owned People's Daily a further 26 people were found to be using fake IDs to travel.
The glasses work by using a camera that allows the officer to compare mug shots to the individual in question.
It will allow them access to basic information on the suspect including name, gender, and ethnicity address.
The technology can also provide them with more private information such as whether the suspect is on the run from the law, the address of the hotel they are staying in and their internet usage.
According to experts China is far ahead of western countries in developing facial recognition due to its lax privacy laws.
While the government is very proud of the technology Amnesty International's China researcher William Nee told the Daily Mail he's concerned it could lead to impingement on citizen's privacy.
"There is ample evidence that the government is using new technologies, like widespread CCTV cameras combined with facial recognition technology, to create a perfect police state," he said.
Newshub.
