Document and Entity Information - shares	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2016	Nov. 11, 2016
Document And Entity Information
Entity Registrant Name	IMAGEWARE SYSTEMS INC
Entity Central Index Key	0000941685
Document Type	10-Q
Document Period End Date	Sep. 30, 2016
Amendment Flag	false
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Is Entity a Well-known Seasoned Issuer?	No
Is Entity a Voluntary Filer?	No
Is Entity's Reporting Status Current?	Yes
Entity Filer Category	Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		94,807,303
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q3
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2016