Video cameras will be used to spy on people t when France eases its lockdown next week

Video cameras will be used to spy on people to check they are wearing face masks and complying with social distancing when France eases its lockdown next week

  • The city of Cannes on the southern Côte d’Azur trialled the monitoring software 
  • It is not currently clear how many other cities will adopt this digital surveillance
  • It comes ahead of the May 11 relaxation of France’s tough two-month lockdown 

Video cameras will be used to spy on people to check they are wearing face masks and complying with social distancing when France eases its lockdown next week.  

The city of Cannes on the southern Côte d’Azur has trialled the monitoring software, installed at outdoor markets and on buses.

It is not currently clear how many other cities will adopt this digital surveillance but the French firm Datakalab – a startup launched in 2017 – says its software does not violate EU data privacy law. 

It comes ahead of the May 11 relaxation of France’s tough two-month lockdown, when children will return to school in stages, some businesses will reopen and people will be able to travel within 100 kilometres (60 miles) of their homes without a signed justification for their movement. 

Video cameras will be used to spy on people to check they are wearing face masks and complying with social distancing when France eases its lockdown next week (file image)

‘No image is stored or transmitted, ensuring that personal information is protected,’ Datakalab told The BBC, announcing its collaboration with Cannes city hall. 

The French surveillance system includes an automatic alert to city authorities and police where breaches of the mask and distancing rules are spotted.

Datakalab says it is ‘not facial recognition’, as the system does not store identifying data, unlike surveillance common in China.

It added that its algorithms can be incorporated into existing surveillance systems in other public spaces, such as hospitals, stations, airports and shopping centres.  

The number of new deaths from COVID-19 in France has been declining in recent days, with 135 fatalities reported over the past 24 hours on Sunday.

The number of new deaths from COVID-19 in France has been declining in recent days, with 135 fatalities reported over the past 24 hours on Sunday. Pictured: a woman wears a mask in Paris

The number of new deaths from COVID-19 in France has been declining in recent days, with 135 fatalities reported over the past 24 hours on Sunday. Pictured: a woman wears a mask in Paris

The national health service said the increase brought France’s total death toll to 24,895, the world’s fifth highest figure after the United States, Italy, Britain and Spain.

The last time the number of daily reported deaths was below 135 was on March 22, when it represented only those reported by hospitals. The current figure also includes deaths reported by elderly care homes and other medicalised care facilities. 

Cannes Mayor David Lisnard said: ‘This technology doesn’t identify people but just gives us mathematical analysis to meet people’s needs.’  

From May 11 face masks will be compulsory in France on public transport and in secondary schools. Shops and markets will also have the right to ask shoppers to wear masks.

It comes as the Eurostar says all its passengers must wear face masks as a safeguard against Covid-19, effective from today.