The photographs were collected in public areas and made available to researchers after five years when most students would have graduated." A facial recognition study , sponsored by the US military and intelligence services and conducted between 2012 and 2013 , took images of more than 1,700 students without their permission , according to media reports . Dr Terrence Boult , who led the study to develop algorithms which could identify people at a distance , said they were used in public and were not illegal . Boult also warned the images , if subsequently used by police forces , could potentially lead to misidentification .
A facial recognition study , sponsored by the US military and intelligence services and conducted between 2012 and 2013 , took images of more than 1,700 students without their permission , according to media reports . Dr Terrence Boult , who led the study to develop algorithms which could identify people at a distance , said they were used in public and were not illegal . Boult also warned the images , if subsequently used by police forces , could potentially lead to misidentification .