 Forward Intelligence Teams ( FITs ) are two or more police officers who are deployed by UK police forces to gather intelligence on the ground and in some circumstances , to disrupt activists and deter anti @-@ social behaviour . They use cameras , <unk> and audio recorders to conduct overt surveillance of the public . An unsuccessful legal challenge has been made against their use of overt surveillance , but in 2009 the Court of Appeal ruled that they must justify retention of photographs on a case @-@ by @-@ case basis . Any retained information is recorded on the Crimint database . 
