TfNSW begins hunt for new driver licence facial recognition system

Transport for NSW (TfNSW) has begun searching for a new facial recognition system to support its licence photo database, a year ahead of its current agreement with NEC Australia expiring.

The agency has issued a tender request for a new supplier of a biometric data solution, which is used to prevent driver licence fraud and assist government agencies , including NSW Police, with identity verification and evidence gathering.

The new system will be required to verify the identity of individuals by comparing new photos against Transport for NSW’s existing records.

It will also be able to check these images against others in its database and DRIVES system information, as well as those held by other government agencies, to detect duplicate identities or possible fraud.

In a statement to iTnews, TfNSW noted it issues “a range of licence and identification documents to the NSW public”.

"A key part of issuing these documents is ensuring the right person obtains them, supporting TfNSW’s objective of: ‘one driver, one licence’,” a TfNSW spokesperson said.

“Every time a licence, identity document or permit is issued, TfNSW needs to ensure the identity of the customer on the document is valid and the customer does not have multiple identities.”

In 2018, when the agency was still known as Roads and Maritime Services, TfNSW awarded NEC Australia a one-year contract worth $5.6 million to replace its existing facial recognition system developed by Idemia.

The contract was subsequently extended by seven and a half years, increasing its total value to $15.5 million, with the agreement now set to expire in December 2026.

The system, housed in the NSW government’s GovDC data centre, was built and operated by NEC.

While the exact product was not disclosed, one of NEC’s flagship offerings is its NeoFace-based matching engine, which is designed to compare a person’s photo against a large database of images.

The new supplier will be responsible for migrating data from the current system into the new platform, though TfNSW emphasised that the data will remain within the NSW government and not with the vendor.

A decision on the system is expected to be made in January 2026.