Dr. Brian Plastow

‘Dr Brian Plastow is the Scottish Biometrics Commissioner and exercises independent oversight of the use of biometric data and technologies for policing and law enforcement purposes in Scotland. He was appointed as Commissioner in 2021 by the late Queen Elizabeth II on the nomination of the Scottish Parliament. He is independent of Government and provides assurance to the Parliament on the lawful, effective, and ethical use of biometrics for law enforcement purposes.

He is also a member of the UK Forensic Information Database Service (FINDS) which is the UK strategic governance forum for the UK law enforcement databases containing biometrics/forensics including international biometric exchange mechanisms.

Brian was formerly a senior police officer in Scotland and has extensive practical experience in the investigative use of biometrics and forensics. He has been working in and around law enforcement in the UK since 1978 and holds a PhD in Criminology from the University of Leicester’.