Privacy Blog

"Friends don’t let friends get spied on.' – Richard Stallman, President of the Free Software Foundation and longtime advocate of privacy in technology.

Facial Recognition

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Covid-19 Masks Are Breaking Facial Recognition Software

Here is still another reason why you should wear a medical face mask: Masks are breaking police facial recognition. The rapid global spread and persistent threat of the coronavirus has presented an obvious roadblock to facial recognition’s similar global expansion. Suddenly everyone is covering their faces. Even in ideal conditions, facial recognition technologies often struggle with accuracy and have a particularly dismal track record when it comes to identifying faces […]

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Government Use of Facial Recognition Is Banned in Boston

Boston is the latest city to ban the use of facial recognition, joining a growing list of administrations to outlaw the tech. The decision comes amid a growing backlash against the software, which research shows consistently misidentifies people of color. An MIT study found that facial recognition algorithms designed by Microsoft, IBM, and Face++ made up to 35% more errors when detecting the gender of darker-skinned women. For light-skinned men, […]

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The Dangers of Facial Recognition: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver

Want to learn about just some of the dangers of the widespread use of facial recognition software? John Oliver takes a look at facial recognition technology, how it’s used by private companies and law enforcement, and why it can be dangerous. The video is available on YouTube at https://youtu.be/jZjmlJPJgug or in the video player below. Caution: the video contains some profanity.

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