: Organizations like the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and the GAO have frequently criticized the lack of transparency and privacy protections surrounding this massive collection of images. 2. Legitimate "FBI Faces" Research Datasets
: Managed by NIST, this is one of the most famous datasets for facial recognition research, containing thousands of images under controlled conditions. Download FBI Faces zip
: The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) hosts the Computer Forensic Reference Data Sets (CFReDS) , which include zip files of simulated forensic data for testing tools. : The National Institute of Standards and Technology
: Be cautious of unofficial sites claiming to offer an "FBI Face Database" download. These are often malware traps or phishing attempts designed to exploit curiosity about sensitive government data. Next Generation Identification (NGI) — LE - FBI.gov Next Generation Identification (NGI) — LE - FBI
The FBI does not provide a public "zip" download of its facial recognition database. Their primary system, the Next Generation Identification (NGI) , is a secure, multi-biometric repository used only by vetted law enforcement.
