Facial Recognition and Law Enforcement
“One in two American adults is in a law-enforcement facial-recognition database, often without his or her knowledge, while only a handful of cities regulate how the technology is used. And consumers are willingly opting in, even as they question the technology: The industry is forecasted to reach $9.6 billion by 2022.”
The long history of — and recent backlash to — facial recognition
“The first facial-recognition technology was arguably created by the French police officer Alphonse Bertillon more than a century ago. In the late 1800s, Bertillon devised a method for identifying criminals based on their physical features. ... Bertillon’s system became widely used in France and soon spread to the United States, where it gained brief popularity until it was replaced by a much quicker and more reliable ruler: fingerprinting.”
“Why has the use of facial recognition become such a hot-button issue now? The most obvious answer is that the technology has been improved, streamlined, and commercialized to the point that it has become widely accessible ... Computer scientists can now teach computers to teach themselves to recognize faces.”
Why law enforcement is growing more dependent on the technology
“Facial-recognition software is widely used by local and federal law-enforcement agencies across the country, including the New York Police Department and the FBI. But concerns about the technology’s accuracy and questions about privacy and its susceptibility to abuse have led more than a dozen state and city legislatures to ban the software’s use to varying degrees.”
There are few laws regulating facial recognition. That might change soon.
“In 2018, to prove the fallibility of the tech, the American Civil Liberties Union put every sitting member of the House and Senate through Amazon’s Rekognition software, comparing their faces with 25,000 publicly available mug shots. Twenty-eight of them came back with false positives, springing some lawmakers into action. Though no federal regulations have yet been put in place, ten bills that address facial recognition’s use are being considered — by both sides of the aisle. ... Part of the reason the government hasn’t implemented policies and legislation is the technology has been advancing so quickly.”
The California Sunday Magazine, January, 22, 2020: “Facial RecognitionThe controversial and nearly ever-present technology that could replace the fingerprint,” by Meher Ahmad, Adrian Chen, Chris Outcalt, and Joy Shan
Controversial facial recognition firm Clearview AI facing legal claims after damning NYT report
“Clearview AI, an artificial intelligence firm providing facial recognition technology to US law enforcement, may be overstating how effective its services are in catching terrorist suspects and preventing attacks ... The company, claims it was instrumental in identifying a New York suspect from video footage who had placed three rice cookers disguised as explosive devices around New York City last August, creating panic and setting off a citywide manhunt. ... But city police now say this is simply false.”
“The NYPD now says it has no formal relationship with Clearview, despite the company’s claims otherwise both in the promotional material it’s using to pitch its technology around the country and even publicly on its website. ... Clearview has quickly risen to the forefront of the national conversation around facial recognition technology — in particular, growing concern among activists and politicians over how it may be used to violate civil rights and whether it’s being adopted too quickly based on false or misleading claims about its effectiveness.”
The Verge, January 24, 2020: “Controversial facial recognition firm Clearview AI facing legal claims after damning NYT report,” by Nick Statt
Buzzfeed News, January 23, 2020: “Clearview AI Says Its Facial Recognition Software Identified A Terrorism Suspect. The Cops Say That's Not True,” by Ryan Mac, Caroline Haskins, and Logan McDonald
New York Times, January 14, 2020: “The Secretive Company That Might End Privacy as We Know It,” by Kashmir Hill
Toronto Star, January 28, 2020: “Facial recognition technology poses ‘enormous’ potential for abuse, NDP says,” by Alex Boutilier