Licence plate readers operating in more than a dozen sites across Greater Sudbury

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Licence plate cameras present small risk to privacy

Police activate licence plate readers at 16 Sudbury intersections

The Greater Sudbury Police Service has activated a network of stationary Automated Licence Plate Reader systems at 16 strategic locations across the city, funded by a provincial grant.

Police announced the cameras in a news release Wednesday. Officials said the move is part of its commitment to community safety and targets individuals who pose “an elevated risk to the safety, security and wellness of Greater Sudbury.”

How the system operates

“The stationary ALPRs are used for more investigative leads when it comes to things like missing persons, amber alerts, human trafficking, drug investigations, stolen vehicles or an active and ongoing investigation,” police spokesperson Kaitlyn Dunn told CTV News on Thursday.

“The camera system is purged every seven days. So every seven days, if you are not a vehicle of interest, the pictures are purged from the system.”

The high-resolution cameras are designed to read and record the rear licence plates of passing vehicles. Police said the cameras are pointed downwards and don’t capture images of individuals inside vehicles.

Only designated and trained officers can enter such plates into the system, which include those associated with stolen vehicles, missing persons, Amber Alerts or active criminal investigations for offences like human and weapons trafficking and organized crime.

“The overall objectives of stationary ALPR systems are public safety and holding offenders accountable,” Sudbury police said – describing the systems as “effective evidentiary tools” that will assist with time-sensitive investigations and provide operational efficiencies.

A tool for the ‘gateway to the North’

Police added that as the largest city in the north, Sudbury is in a unique position.

“As the largest municipality in northern Ontario, Greater Sudbury is viewed as the gateway to the North for organized crime,” said the release said.

The licens plate reader cameras aims to help police identify suspicious patterns, develop intelligence on vehicle movements and proactively target offenders.

When a flagged plate is detected, the system alerts designated officers with the date, time, location, direction of travel and images of the rear of the vehicle.

The force also emphasized the multi-jurisdictional nature of major crimes, noting the technology will assist as they “coordinate, collaborate with and assist partner law enforcement agencies.”

Privacy safeguards cited

Sudbury police said a privacy impact assessment was conducted before the systems were activated and have assured that all licence plates entered into the system by personnel will be monitored and audited.

“Audits will be conducted to ensure that the system is being utilized for a lawful purpose,” reads the police news release.

Cybersecurity expert Ritesh Kotak said the placement and use of the cameras limit the risks to personal privacy.

“Some sort of text analysis where that licence plate actually passed one of those cameras, it’s most likely just going to be a snapshot with an image of the license plate when it passes by,” Kotak said.

“So the privacy risk is very low.”

The purchase and installation of the stationary ALPR systems were made possible through funds from the Government of Ontario’s Closed-Circuit Television Grant program.

The 16 locations

Dunn said the locations of the cameras were chosen carefully.

“The intersections and locations of the 16 stationary ALPRs are based on intelligence-led information,” she said.

“So the locations were determined based on high traffic areas as well as entrance points and exit points of the city.”

The locations of the ALPR systems are as follows:

1. Elm Street at Regent Street
2. Paris Street/Long Lake Road at Regent Street
3. Notre Dame Avenue at Kathleen Street
4. Magill Street at Municipal Road 55
5. Municipal Road 55 at Big Nickel Road
6. Lasalle Boulevard at Notre Dame Avenue
7. Falconbridge Road at Lasalle Boulevard
8. Kingsway Boulevard at Barrydowne Road
9. Paris Street at Brady Street
10. Regent Street at Cam Street
11. Kingsway Boulevard at Sudbury Landfill Road
12. Municipal Road 35 at Pilon Street
13. Maley Drive at Falconbridge Road
14. Regional Road 55 at Regional Road 24
15. Lorne Street at Kelly Lake Road
16. Barrydowne Road at Lasalle Boulevard