It is also predicated on the Public Services Card, a de facto national ID card by stealth (the electorate in Ireland has resisted any attempts to implement a na

It is also predicated on the Public Services Card, a de facto national ID card by stealth (the electorate in Ireland has resisted any attempts to implement a national ID card) which is "not compulsory but is mandatory for services" (from https://www.thejournal.ie/regina-doherty-public-services-card-3564489-Aug2017/ https://www.thejournal.ie/regina-doherty-public-services-car... ) and of which the Data Protection Commission has ruled "that the State’s retention of personal data on the 3.2m cards in existence is unlawful" (from https://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/ireland/data-commissioner-issues-enforcement-notice-in-respect-of-public-services-card-968977.html https://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/ireland/data-comm... ). The government contest this result (and have been accused of using budgetary measures to hamper the DPC's ability to investigate and enforce their findings), but the use of facial recognition in Ireland is currently unlawful, and, personally speaking, a disgrace. In terms of the use of facial recognition by the Gardaí, the truth is that we don't know whether it has been used - only that its fruits haven't been included in any book of evidence.