Devon and Cornwall Police will deploy live facial recognition (LFR) technology in Newquay this week as part of security measures around the Boardmasters festival, which runs from 5 to 9 August 2026 and features headline sets from Lily Allen, Kasabian and Fatboy Slim. The cameras will operate in the town rather than at the festival site itself in Watergate Bay, with police saying the aim is to reduce violence against women and girls, tackle organised crime, identify sexual offenders and stop drugs entering the county.

A police van fitted with a biometric camera will scan faces in Killacourt against a watch list of known criminals, suspects and individuals subject to sexual harm prevention orders, with images of uninvolved members of the public deleted within seconds. The move follows criticism of the 2024 and 2025 festivals, which saw a crowd surge causing hospitalisations, multiple arrests, and spiking allegations; organisers reported 14 spiking cases in 2025, down from 55 the previous year, with all on-site tests returning negative results.