Warning to drivers who use speed camera 'hack' that makes car plates 'invisible'

Motorists trying to evade speed cameras with illegal number plates to avoid speeding penalties are being warned they face a hefty fine - as new technology is being implemented to catch them.

'Ghost plates', also known as 3D or 4D plates, are being fitted to vehicles and are invisible to bus lane and speed cameras. It's estimated that as many as one in 15 drivers are using the plates in order to outsmart the cameras, including cameras in low-emission zones, which are enforced in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen.

But police forces are now employing cutting-edge technology in a bid to snare drivers and they could face a fine of £100 when caught.

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Former Biometrics and Surveillance Camera Commissioner Professor Fraser Sampson has already raised concerns that this 'staggeringly simple' tactic has been met with a lack of action by law makers, reports Lancs Live. Prof Sampson wrote to the then Conservative government's Transport secretary Mark Harper in his resignation letter to raise his concerns.

He told of the lengths some motorists go to to avoid being fined. He explained how offenders are cloning number plates, applying reflective tape, and even acquiring 'stealth plates' to dodge speeding tickets and low-emission zone fees.

In response, councils are now investing in more sophisticated cameras which can detect the number plates. Wolverhampton has given council enforcers advanced cameras to spearhead the initiative - motorists caught with these type of plates can be fined £100.

Councillor Craig Collingswood, Wolverhampton City Council's cabinet member for environment and climate change told Birmingham Live: "Wolverhampton is leading the way as the first council investing in this state-of- art technology to deter and detect offenders."

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The plate recognition technology has a 97 per cent accuracy rate, but figures show it misreads 2.4 million number plates, which could potentially lead to undeserved penalties for innocent drivers. Current figures show that on an average day, around 15,400 traffic cameras scan UK roads, producing between 75 and 80 million reads – at times surpassing 80 million.

Prof Sampson has warned that this figure could rise to 100 million daily reads by the end of 2024 and he stressed the importance of bus lanes and speed cameras for public safety. He said: "Bus lanes are essential for the public transport network to operate efficiently and speed cameras help to keep the public safe from speeding vehicles and reduce the likelihood of a crash.

"All motorists can expect to pay a fine if found to be using these illegal methods to avoid cameras and taxi drivers licensed by Wolverhampton may have their licence suspended or revoked."

He has previously raised concerns about the vulnerability of Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) systems, despite technological advancements and their critical role in operational activities.

He warned: "For all its technological advancement and operational indispensability, the ANPR system still relies ultimately on a piece of plastic affixed to either end of a vehicle. Served by a wholly unregulated market, what my predecessor termed the humble number plate represents a single and readily assailable point of failure with the ANPR network being easily defeated by the manufacture and sale of stealth plates, cloned registration marks and other rudimentary obscurant tactics."

He also emphasised how easy it is for some to undermine such systems. "The result is that the ability to frustrate the ANPR system remains staggeringly simple at a time when proper reliance on it for key public services such as policing, law enforcement and traffic management is increasing daily.

"Emission zones and other strategic traffic enforcement schemes put motorists in situations where they have to make significant financial choices and it is at least arguable that the incentives for some to 'game' the ANPR systems have never been greater."

And he said it is straightforward to deceive the technology, adding: "Merely by applying reflective tape to distort part of a registration plate or purchasing stealth plates from online vendors, motorists can confuse and confound current number plate recognition technology and both of these are easily obtainable.

"One recent estimate suggested that one in fifteen drivers may already be using anti-ANPR technology; it is reasonable to expect this conduct to increase as the reliance on ANPR for new traffic management schemes continues."

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