#What a DSAR actually requires from your video redaction process
When an individual submits a data subject access request (DSAR), you have one month to respond. If the request involves CCTV, bodycam, or dashcam footage, you must redact every face, licence plate, and identifying detail except those belonging to the person who made the request, and then export the footage in a format you can share securely.
The ICO is explicit: not having the tools to redact is not a valid reason to refuse or delay. Organisations are expected to have the means to do this. Failure to comply can result in enforcement notices, fines of up to £17.5 million or 4% of global turnover, and reputational damage.
DSARs are also increasing. In 2023, the ICO received more than 15,300 complaints related to DSARs — a 13.5% rise from the previous year.
The redaction method you choose directly determines whether you stay inside that 30-day window.
#Why general video editing tools are not a fit for DSARs
The search results recommending Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro, or open-source tools like Shotcut and Blender are not wrong — those tools can blur faces.
But they were built for video editors, not compliance teams, and the difference matters.
Manual masking doesn't scale. To blur a face using a video editing tool, you draw a mask over the face, keyframe it to follow the person's movement, and apply a blur effect.
For a 10-minute CCTV clip with several people moving through the frames, that's hours of work per video. One HR professional at a healthcare organisation was spending 38 weeks a year on this task using Adobe products to fulfil SARs.
Another issue with using video editing tools is that the blur is not irreversible.
In a video editing project file, the blur is a layer — it can be removed by anyone with access to the file. Compliance requires permanent redaction, not an editable effect.
If you decide to go with a web-based face blurring platform, you’ll need to upload your footage to a third-party server, which increases data exposure risks. Under GDPR, you remain the data controller for that footage. Any breach during transit or processing is your liability.
Lastly, general editing tools produce no record of what was redacted, when, or by whom. If the ICO investigates, you won’t have an audit trail to demonstrate your process.
#How automated face blurring handles DSAR response
Specialised video redaction software does the heavy lifting that manual tools require you to do frame by frame.
Here's what the automated workflow looks like in practice, using our solution, Identity Cloak, as the example. It’s an on-premise solution with an average video processing time of 12 minutes.
#Step 1: Import and trim your footage
Open Identity Cloak and import the video file. It supports CCTV, bodycam, dashcam, and mobile phone footage, plus legacy footage via built-in screen recorder. Use the trim tool to isolate the relevant section before processing — this keeps the export clean and reduces processing time.
#Step 2: Run autotracking
Identity Cloak's AI automatically tracks people and vehicles, including through turns, partial occlusions, and crowded scenes.
To unmask the person making the DSAR inquiry, all you need is to click on them, and Identity Cloak will remove the blur throughout the footage.
#Step 3: Adjust settings
Depending on the type of video you’re processing, you can adjust settings to change blur mode or tracking sensitivity, and add custom blur regions. For sensitive environments, you can also use the full screen blur mode, hiding everything except for the subject of interest.
#Step 4: Review the redacted footage and export
Play back the processed video before exporting. Check that all required faces are blurred and that the subject of interest remains visible. Then, you can export the redacted video in AVI or MP4.
The blur is baked permanently into the exported file — it cannot be removed or reversed. Identity Cloak doesn’t change your original unredacted footage, so that it can be stored securely in case it’s needed later.
#What compliance teams say about the difference
Identity Cloak is used by 130+ organisations in retail, healthcare, education, transportation, and more. Here’s what our customers say about using Identity Cloak:
Geoff Shepherd, CCTV Supervisor at Nottingham City Transport:
Facit saves us time. A 1-minute video takes 8 minutes to process. That’s start-to-finish – uploading the video, processing and exporting.
A Data and Access Support Officer at MerseyRail:
I was able to redact an 8 minute clip from start to finish in about 10 minutes which usually could take up to 30 or longer depending on the footage itself.
Barry Palmer, Head of Safety and Security at Tate:
The investment in Identity Cloak is value for money, there are many ways in which the software has paid for itself, from risk and reputation management to cost-effective compliance with GDPR, as failure to comply with GDPR carries hefty fines.
#Identity Cloak Pricing
All Identity Cloak plans include unlimited video length and unlimited exports:
Starter — 10 videos per year
Standard — 35 videos per year
Pro — 125 videos per year
Enterprise — unlimited videos, fixed pricing, device licensing available
Discounts available for health and education organisations.
Compare plans and start your free trial.
#Frequently asked questions
Does Identity Cloak work with our existing CCTV system?
Yes. Identity Cloak is camera-agnostic and works with footage from any installed CCTV system, bodycams, dashcams, and mobile devices. No hardware changes needed.
Can non-technical staff use it?
Yes. The interface is designed for compliance and security staff. Most users are processing their first video within 15 minutes of installation.
What if we use Milestone XProtect?
Facit offers dedicated Milestone XProtect plug-ins for both live redaction and playback redaction — so you can redact footage directly inside your existing VMS without exporting files separately.
Is the blur permanent?
Yes. The exported file has the blur baked in. There's no project file, no removable layer, and no way to reverse the redaction on the exported copy.
How long does processing take?
On recommended hardware, the average processing time is 12 minutes per video. Facit has processed over 15,000 videos for customers to date.
