Pinellas County Sheriff's Office
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office is a Florida county-level law enforcement agency providing patrol, investigations, corrections, and homeland security services to Pinellas County residents and visitors, and operating the FACES facial recognition system for hundreds of US police departments since 2001.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2001
- HeadquartersLargo, United States
- Headcount1,001–5,000
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Pinellas County Sheriff's Office does
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office (PCSO) is a county-level law enforcement agency headquartered in Largo, Florida, providing comprehensive public safety services to the residents, visitors, and businesses of Pinellas County. The agency operates across multiple bureaus including Patrol Operations, Investigative Operations, Homeland Security, Judicial Operations, and Corrections, with specialized units such as Cyber Investigations, Crimes Against Children, Robbery & Homicide, and the Use of Deadly Force Investigative Task Force. PCSO is led by an elected Sheriff, currently Bob Gualtieri, and is CALEA accredited. The agency is funded through Pinellas County budgets and public appropriations rather than commercial revenue.
Since 2001, PCSO has operated the FACES (Facial Analysis Comparison & Embedding System) facial recognition software, making it one of the oldest continuously-operated police face-recognition tools in the United States. FACES provides facial comparison services to hundreds of police departments nationwide, returning similarity percentage matches used in suspect identification. Beyond FACES, PCSO has expanded its forensic toolkit through partnership with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) on genetic genealogy testing for cold case DNA work, exemplified by the May 2026 arrest of Lester Austin III in a 1998 armed sexual battery case. PCSO also runs community engagement programs including the 56 Podcast, Citizens Academy, Neighborhood Watch, and Victim Services, and operates Pinellas Safe Harbor as its inmate services facility.
PCSO's business model is government appropriations rather than commercial pricing, and its services are delivered directly to the public via 911 emergency dispatch, a non-emergency line, field patrol, and service centers. The agency's technology product line — anchored by FACES — is provisioned at no disclosed cost to other police departments, and inter-agency partnerships with entities such as the Jacksonville Beach Police Department, Jacksonville Sheriff's Office, FDLE, the US Marshal's Task Force, and the Pinellas County Medical Examiner's Office extend its operational footprint across Florida. Notable legal exposure exists from the 2024 ACLU-backed Robert Dillon wrongful arrest lawsuit, which alleges FACES produced a false 93% match leading to a misidentification.
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Pinellas County Sheriff's Office
- Legal name
- Pinellas County Sheriff's Office
- Website
- https://pcsoweb.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2001
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1,001–5,000 employees
- Short description
- Pinellas County Sheriff's Office is a Florida county-level law enforcement agency providing patrol, investigations, corrections, and homeland security services to Pinellas County residents and visitors, and operating the FACES facial recognition system for hundreds of US police departments since 2001.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Law Enforcement Services
- NAICS
- Police Protection (922120), Correctional Institutions (922140)
- SIC
- Services-Detective, Guard & Armored Car Services (7381)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Security Systems Monitoring & Dispatch (SOC/Remote Guarding) (IMAIAEAF)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Correctional Facility Management Outsourcing & Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) (BPAKANAJ)
Keywords
Where Pinellas County Sheriff's Office is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Largo
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Others
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels3 records
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office (PCSO) is a county-level law enforcement agency delivering patrol operations, criminal investigations, corrections, court services, and homeland security to the residents and visitors of Pinellas County, Florida. Its core technology product is the FACES facial recognition system, operated since 2001 and provided as a comparison service to hundreds of police departments nationwide. Supporting services include fingerprinting, alarm registration, victim services, public education programs, and community volunteer initiatives.
Product overview
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office operates a law enforcement agency with FACES (Facial Recognition System) as its primary technology product. FACES is a face-recognition system that has been operational since 2001, providing facial recognition comparison services to hundreds of police departments nationwide. The agency offers various public safety programs and services including patrol operations, investigative operations, corrections, and community programs through its website portal, but FACES remains the core technology offering that distinguishes PCSO's technical product portfolio.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- FACES (Facial Analysis Comparison & Embedding System): Facial recognition software system operated by PCSO since 2001, used by hundreds of police departments for facial analysis and identification.
- 56 Podcast
- Pinellas Safe Harbor
- Fifty Six Podcast
Products and services
- FACES Facial Recognition System
- Patrol Operations
- Investigative Operations
- Corrections and Inmate Services
- Court Services
- Fingerprinting Services
- Alarm Registration (SHARP)
- Citizens Academy
Quantifiable outcome
- Services provided to hundreds of police departments through FACES facial recognition system
Companies that use Pinellas County Sheriff's Office
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability2 records
Feature1 record
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Jacksonville Beach Police DepartmentcoreJBPD collaborated with PCSO in a wrongful arrest case where FACES facial recognition was used to identify Robert Dillon. PCSO provided the facial recognition comparison that led to the arrest. This partnership involves shared use of facial recognition technology in joint investigations.
- Jacksonville Sheriff's OfficecoreJacksonville Sheriff's Office partnered with PCSO in the FACES facial recognition case. The lawsuit names both agencies along with JBPD. The investigating officer and Jacksonville Sheriff are named as defendants in the ACLU lawsuit filed on behalf of Robert Dillon.
- US Marshal's Task ForcecoreUS Marshal's Task Force assisted PCSO in locating Lester Austin III at his Tampa residence for a cold case arrest. The Task Force executed the arrest warrant for two counts of Armed Sexual Battery stemming from a 1998 case.
- Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE)coreFDLE used genetic genealogy testing beginning in October 2019 to identify Lester Austin III from DNA evidence collected in a 1998 cold case. This partnership enabled PCSO to make an arrest in a decades-old sexual battery case.
- Pinellas County Medical Examiner's OfficecoreThe Medical Examiner's Office is identifying human remains found in Tampa Bay during the search for missing USF student Nahida Bristy. PCSO investigators recovered the remains and transferred them to the Medical Examiner for identification.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Axon: Axon provides a broad portfolio of law enforcement technology (body cameras, records, digital evidence) and has been expanding into AI-based identification — comparable to PCSO as a major technology vendor serving US police agencies.
- Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE): FDLE is the statewide law enforcement agency that partnered with PCSO on genetic genealogy testing; it operates overlapping forensic, investigative, and identification capabilities relevant to PCSO's FACES and forensic partnership workflows.
Direct peers
- Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department: Largest county Sheriff's office in the US by headcount; operates comparable patrol, investigations, corrections, and specialized unit functions to PCSO at a substantially larger scale.
- Clearview AI: Clearview AI provides facial recognition search services to hundreds of law enforcement agencies in the US, directly competing with PCSO's FACES system in the same buyer segment (police departments) with a comparable comparison-service model.
- Harris County Sheriff's Office: Harris County (Houston) Sheriff's Office is a large full-service county law enforcement agency operating patrol, investigations, and corrections functions comparable in scope to PCSO.
- Vigilant Solutions (Motorola Solutions): Vigilant Solutions, owned by Motorola Solutions, offers facial recognition and license plate recognition tools to US law enforcement — directly comparable to PCSO's FACES offering in customer base and use case.
- Cook County Sheriff's Office: Cook County (Chicago) Sheriff's Office operates as a large full-service county law enforcement agency with patrol, corrections, court services, and forensic technology capabilities comparable to PCSO.
- Idemia: Idemia supplies biometric identification (facial, fingerprint) to law enforcement and government agencies, directly comparable to PCSO's FACES for suspect identification workflows.
- NEC Corporation (NeoFace): NEC's NeoFace is one of the most widely deployed facial recognition platforms in US law enforcement and government, directly comparable to FACES as a biometric identification service for police agencies.
Emerging players
- Cognitec Systems: Cognitec's FaceVACS facial recognition technology is used by law enforcement and government agencies for identification, making it a comparable biometric vendor to PCSO's FACES system.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office social profiles
Digital presencePinellas County Sheriff's Office compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Pinellas County Sheriff's Office
What does Pinellas County Sheriff's Office do?
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office (PCSO) is a county-level law enforcement agency delivering patrol operations, criminal investigations, corrections, court services, and homeland security to the residents and visitors of Pinellas County, Florida. Its core technology product is the FACES facial recognition system, operated since 2001 and provided as a comparison service to hundreds of police departments nationwide. Supporting services include fingerprinting, alarm registration, victim services, public education programs, and community volunteer initiatives.
Is Pinellas County Sheriff's Office a public or private company?
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office is a private company. It is classified as state government owned and is currently operating.
When was Pinellas County Sheriff's Office founded?
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office was founded in 2001. It employs 1,001 to 5,000 people.
Where is Pinellas County Sheriff's Office based?
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office is headquartered in Largo, United States, in the North America region.
Who are Pinellas County Sheriff's Office's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Axon and Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE). Direct peers are Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, Clearview AI, Harris County Sheriff's Office, Vigilant Solutions (Motorola Solutions), Cook County Sheriff's Office, Idemia and NEC Corporation (NeoFace). Cognitec Systems is listed as an emerging player.
Does Pinellas County Sheriff's Office have an API?
No public API is recorded for Pinellas County Sheriff's Office.
What industry is Pinellas County Sheriff's Office in?
Pinellas County Sheriff's Office's product category is Law Enforcement Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is IMAIAEAF, Security Systems Monitoring & Dispatch (SOC/Remote Guarding), with a secondary code of BPAKANAJ, Correctional Facility Management Outsourcing & Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs). Its NAICS code is 922120 and its SIC code is 7381.