Wrongful arrests linked to Smart Sampa facial recognition system in São Paulo
A research report by three Brazilian civil society organizations found that São Paulo's Smart Sampa facial recognition system has led to wrongful arrests through misidentification errors and reinforces racial and geographic inequalities in policing. Of 1,153 arrests generated by the system since 2023, at least 23 were wrongful due to facial recognition failures and 82 individuals were later released, while the system disproportionately targeted Black residents and peripheral neighborhoods.
What happened
A research report by Laboratório de Políticas Públicas e Internet (LAPIN), Instituto de Referência Negra Peregum, and Rede Liberdade found that Smart Sampa, São Paulo's facial recognition and video surveillance system operating since 2023 with up to 40,000 cameras, has generated false positives and wrongful arrests.
The system registered 1,246 police stops resulting in 1,153 arrests, with at least 23 people wrongfully conducted due to facial recognition inconsistencies and 82 persons arrested and subsequently released. Of the arrests, 540 were classified by the municipality as 'other' without detailed justification.
Reported impact
The system has deepened racial and geographic inequalities, with arrests concentrated in the city center and peripheral neighborhoods including Brás and Cracolândia. Of identified persons, 25% were Black (18.49% mixed race and 6.60% Black), 16.01% were white, and 58.9% had no recorded race information.
The research found structural fragility and lack of transparency in data management, and questioned the system's compatibility with Brazil's Lei Geral de Proteção de Dados (LGPD) regarding personal data storage while claiming no data retention.
Index analysis
The most frequent crime categories prosecuted via Smart Sampa were robbery (153 cases), drug trafficking (137), and theft (17). Over 90% of remaining arrests related to child support obligations, which organizations stated bore no direct relation to public security.
Researchers found that arrests disproportionately affected men (93.58%) and questioned whether the system reinforced selective policing and racial segregation despite the municipality's stated crime reduction results.
Governance controls
The municipality's Transparency Report, released in June 2025, and information obtained through Brazil's Lei de Acesso à Informação (Information Access Law) formed the basis of the research findings, revealing insufficient public accountability mechanisms.
The contract for Smart Sampa remains in effect until August 2028 with a monthly investment of up to R$ 10 million, while the research organizations questioned the justification for continued public spending given the system's documented failures and risks to fundamental rights.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.