Phnom Penh launches Smart Police system with 487 AI cameras

A central command centre sits behind the camera network

The programme is formally titled the Lancang-Mekong Regional Smart Policing Development — Video Processing and Analysis System Project in Phnom Penh. Cambodia's Interior Ministry and the Lancang-Mekong Integrated Law Enforcement and Security Cooperation Centre signed the implementation agreement on June 16.

Government news agency AKP reported the following day that the Phnom Penh system comprises 487 CCTV cameras, facial-recognition capability and automatic licence-plate reading, with feeds routed to a central command centre. Its account says the software can support real-time identification and vehicle tracking, while the command centre is intended to help coordinate emergency responses and continuous monitoring of the capital.

There is one limitation worth keeping clear. AKP described the network as switched on, while Cambodianess wrote on June 18 that almost 500 cameras were to be installed under the project. The official launch and the 487-camera scope are well supported; the material reviewed does not establish that every camera was simultaneously operational on launch day or provide a public site-by-site commissioning schedule.

For practical context, see Cambodia market and country comparisons. This development also connects with Cambodia launches Kapea Scams app to flag suspected fraud.

Residents gain a more capable surveillance system, not a new set of rules

For people living, working or driving in Phnom Penh, the practical change is the police's ability to process video using facial and plate recognition rather than relying only on ordinary CCTV footage. Authorities presented the system as a public-safety and emergency-response tool, including for identifying people and vehicles connected with incidents.

The launch reports do not announce a new registration requirement, permit, fee or traffic rule for foreign residents or local drivers. Automatic number-plate recognition should also not be read as proof that every traffic offence will now be detected or fined through this network; the sources describing the project do not set out such an enforcement regime.

Nor does the number of cameras demonstrate that a particular neighbourhood has become safer. The government has stated its intended security benefits, but post-launch evidence on crime reduction or response times would be needed to measure the effect rather than the ambition.

The public launch leaves important data-governance details unanswered

The available project announcements explain what the technology is designed to do, but they do not specify retention periods for footage or recognition data, detailed access controls, audit procedures, or a process for challenging a false match. That is a limit of the published launch material, not proof that no internal rules exist.

Cambodia's broader data-protection framework was also under development earlier in 2026. On April 20, the Ministry of Post and Telecommunications said it was consulting legal and technical advisers on a draft Personal Data Protection Law alongside other digital legislation. That separate legislative process does not, on its own, tell residents what rules apply to Smart Police data, so the two should not be regarded as interchangeable.