There is growing concern that the widespread use of facial recognition technology has led and will lead to the decline of privacy and civil liberties. CCTV cameras and huge databases of facial images–taken from sources such as social media and ID card registers–make it easy to identify individuals as well as track their movements and social interactions. Plus, “facial recognition can be used without subjects’…
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Quick bibliography: Reviews/recent articles on facial recognition–the technology and privacy concerns. Classic reviews: Bowyer, K. W. (2004). Face recognition technology: security versus privacy. IEEE Technology and Society Magazine, 23(1), 9-19. [Cited by] “Video surveillance and face recognition systems have become the subject of increased interest and controversy after the September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States. In favor of face recognition technology, there is…
See moreOver the last year (since September 2018), the top 5 posts searched and read on Science Connections have been: The impact of sea level rise on Florida–and the world Consumer DNA testing–no oversight, no peer review, only estimates Looking to the past for an alternative to cement Facial recognition and privacy Now that China will no longer take it, the U.S. and other countries will…
See moreNews: It may seem that absolutely everyone today is glued to their phones and uses social media, but that’s not true. Facebook, the largest social media network globally, claims “2.41 billion monthly active users as of the second quarter of 2019.” Billions do use social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, etc.), but billions also do not. Further, there are many people counted as “active users”…
See moreNews: Would you let an employee from Walmart or Amazon come inside your home (while you’re not there) to deliver packages or put groceries in your fridge? Are you concerned about privacy, hacked data, sensitive data being made available to law enforcement, yet more waves of online tailored ads, or other electronic intrusions besides the possibility of just plain bad behavior by people in your…
See moreConnections: 9/11 was a big turning point in sacrificing privacy for national security. While there are differing opinions on whether this was the best decision or not, being completely off the grid identity-wise is a thing of the past. Google tracks the locations of cellphone users across the United States. Law enforcement increasingly uses this database (called “Sensorvault”) as part of trying to solve crimes….
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