Top line
Controversial facial recognition company Clearview AI, which Spoken Used by thousands of governments and law enforcement agencies around the world Fine The UK Privacy Watchdog spent more than 9.4 million on Monday to illegally create a database with billions of images taken from social media and the internet.
Basic information
The Office of the Information Commissioner (ICO) says Clearview has illegally collected more than 20 billion images from the Internet and social media to create its Global Facial Recognition Database.
The ICO says the image archive powers an app that matches an uploaded photo with images in the database of ClearView customers – including police and law enforcement agencies.
Although Clearview no longer offers its services to UK companies, the ICO said its database may contain “substantial amounts of data from UK residents” that were collected unknowingly because of the large number of people using social media and the Internet in the country. .
Clearview has violated multiple UK data protection laws, with the ICO saying there is no valid reason to collect personal information, no data retention system indefinitely, and failure to inform people that their data is being used and created in this way. It is difficult for members of the public to object to the collection and use of their data.
In addition to fines of more than $ 9.4 million (£ 7.5 million), ICO has instructed ClearView to remove UK residents ‘data from its system and to stop collecting and using UK residents’ personal data available online.
John Edwards, the UK’s information commissioner, said Clearview AI’s practices were not “unacceptable”, not just to identify people, but to effectively monitor their behavior and offer it as a commercial service.
Original background
When Clearview AI moved from a little-known startup to one of the most visible examples of digital surveillance in 2020 New York Times The company has collected huge amounts of data online and published its client roster filled with law enforcement agencies and police. Since then, the company has been accused of numerous privacy breaches around the world, including in Europe and the United States, and has faced investigations from lawmakers and privacy lawyers. In early May, the company settled a nearly two-year-old lawsuit against working groups in Illinois for violating state privacy laws. Globally, regulators are increasingly seeking to rein in the use of artificial intelligence and mass surveillance online, which naturally occurs across borders. European politicians have floated a potential Prohibition Totally on technology, though there may be exceptions The police.
Large numbers
$ 21.4 million. That’s how much ICO Says It was planning to temporarily fine Clearview in November. It did not say why his final fine was less than half that amount.
Read more
Ukraine begins using face recognition to identify dead Russians and inform relatives (Forbes)
A “threat to the black community”: Senators call on immigration police and FBI to stop using Clearview Facial Recognition (Forbes)
Clearview: Glasses with facial recognition are here — and the Air Force is buying (Forbes)