Police Commissioner Raymond Siu said on Sunday he wouldn't rule out the possibility of adopting facial recognition technology for surveillance cameras in the SAR.

The authorities earlier announced that 2,000 CCTV cameras will be installed across Hong Kong by the end of this year.

Speaking on a television programme, the police chief said 615 of them will be installed in March.

"We are still at the stage of preparation, but we won't rule out the possibility [of using facial recognition technology], because advanced technology can definitely help us with our work more effectively," he said.

But Siu assured people that they need not worry about privacy issues, and said officers would consult the Privacy Commissioner on the matter.

He added that 2,000 cameras are not enough to prevent crime, and more CCTV may be installed in the future.