Investigation concludes: RCMP's use of A.I. facial recognition technology was illegal

The use of Clearview AI’s facial recognition technology (FRT) by the RCMP was in direct violation of Canada’s privacy act, according to an investigation conducted by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.
DailyHive

RCMP broke the law with Clearview AI facial recognition software: watchdog- Global News

Canada’s Office of the Privacy Commissioner (OPC) announced yesterday that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) broke the law by using Clearview AI facial-recognition software.

An OPC investigation launched in July 2020 concluded in February this year that Clearview AI violated the country’s federal private sector privacy law when it created a three-billion-image databank by scraping social media accounts without user consent. Now the OPC has decided the RCMP’s use of the database to match images violated the country’s Privacy Act...CBC

WTF is Clearview AI?


The Secretive Company That Might End Privacy as We Know It

A database of more than three billion images that Clearview claims to have scraped from
Facebook, YouTube, Venmo and millions of other websites

Btw all that data was stolen by hackers:
Clearview AI has billions of our photos. Its entire client list was just stolen- CNN
Clearview AI Hacked - Forbes

Clearview lied about it only being used for law enforcement:

Clearview claims it only allows law enforcement to use its technology,
but reports show that the startup courted users from private businesses like Macy’s, Walmart and the NBA.TechCrunch

Cadillac Fairview (CF), one of North America’s largest commercial real estate companies which also operates malls across Canada,
was put under the spotlight when it was made public that they used Clearview AI’s technology in their shopping centres.DailyHive

The Verge

And then RCMP also lied about how they used it:
RCMP Fails to Explain How It Used Clearview AI Facial Recognition - TheTyee

The RCMP has maintained that the licences it purchased for Clearview AI were to be used by child exploitation units in their investigations.
But according to the privacy commissioner, the RCMP could only attribute six per cent of the software’s use to its child exploitation units.
The force was unable to account for 85 per cent of its Clearview AI searches reviewed by the watchdog agency, said privacy commissioner Daniel Therrien.

They pulled out of Canada when the investigation was launched:
Clearview AI stops offering facial recognition technology in Canada - Reuters
Clearview AI to pull out of Canada and stop working with RCMP amid privacy investigation - TheStar

And they aren't just in North America:
Clearview AI hit with sweeping legal complaints over controversial face scraping in Europe - Verge
Clearview planned expansion to many countries... Brazil, Colombia, Nigeria...United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Singapore...Italy, Greece... Netherlands - Wikipedia

They are using drones at protests to track faces, too:
How police are using technology like drones and facial recognition to monitor protests and track people across the US - BusinessInsider



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I hear they're working on "gait recognition" technology.

originally posted by: Homefree
I hear they're working on "gait recognition" technology.

With the normalization of the public wearing masks, and really no end (that I can see) for mask use in sight, I wonder to what extend these new cutting edge ML-driven facial recognition systems are either greatly inhibited in their operation or rendered completely useless.

If I put on a ball cap or sunglasses, and cover my face above the nose with a bandana, I can obscure virtually my entire head. This constitutes the fashion choice once preferred by bank robbers. It is now "the new normal". The pandemic has extended a giant helping hand to criminals all over the world in their attempts at hiding their identity.

Hence, a different approach to using ML technology to analyze video footage for identifying the public, using their gait, makes a lot of sense.

Problem is, as Kaizer Soze demonstrated, feigning a limp or otherwise introducing an artificial movement to one's gait is really not that hard.

It's disturbing to listen to some of Clearview's defenders justifying the use of the technology "just because".
David Scalzo is one of the bankers that invested in Clearview early on. Apparently, his opinion on these matters is that since "you can't ban technology", then anything goes. Ethics be damned. His statement here is just crazy:

“I’ve come to the conclusion that because information constantly increases, there’s never going to be privacy,” Mr. Scalzo said. “Laws have to determine what’s legal, but you can’t ban technology. Sure, that might lead to a dystopian future or something, but you can’t ban it.”

It's almost like the horrible unintended consequences are just a minor nuisance. Oh yea, by the way, it might lead to a dystopian future. No big deal.

a reply to: SleeperHasAwakened

introducing an artificial movement to one's gait

Monty Python's 'Ministry of Silly Walks' ??

originally posted by: ColeYounger
a reply to: SleeperHasAwakened

introducing an artificial movement to one's gait

Monty Python's 'Ministry of Silly Walks' ??

originally posted by: ColeYounger
It's disturbing to listen to some of Clearview's defenders justifying the use of the technology "just because".
David Scalzo is one of the bankers that invested in Clearview early on. Apparently, his opinion on these matters is that since "you can't ban technology", then anything goes. Ethics be damned. His statement here is just crazy:

“I’ve come to the conclusion that because information constantly increases, there’s never going to be privacy,” Mr. Scalzo said. “Laws have to determine what’s legal, but you can’t ban technology. Sure, that might lead to a dystopian future or something, but you can’t ban it.”

It's almost like the horrible unintended consequences are just a minor nuisance. Oh yea, by the way, it might lead to a dystopian future. No big deal.

The viewpoint of David Scalzo illustrates a very sociopathic outlook on the notion of privacy.

"Privacy is a right for me but not for thee"

I wonder, when Mr. Scalzo puts down $2.5m on a co-op in Midtown Manhattan as a getaway home, if his name is on the title, or if like anyone else shelling out that kind of money for a 3rd or 4th home, his property is anonymously held on his behalf using a real-estate trust or holding company.

“Over 35 percent of the 443 condominiums are owned by shell companies and trusts, and almost 80 percent of the unit owners do not claim a residential exemption, indicating that the condo is not their primary home,” writes Collins. “With average condominiums selling for over $4 million, Millennium Tower is not only a wealthy residence for the rich, but also a ‘wealth storage unit’ for global capital looking to park itself and hold value.”

originally posted by: ColeYounger
a reply to: SleeperHasAwakened

introducing an artificial movement to one's gait

Monty Python's 'Ministry of Silly Walks' ??

You should see me the day after a little bit of exertion with my bad back. Stiffness and pain changes my walk by the day.

Regarding Mr Scalzo and privacy. If technology allowed me to enter his home at night and watch him sleeping, I wonder if he'd feel the same?

a reply to: ADAMandEVIL

Imo..

Everyone deserves a second chance

And in sure the guy is punished enough via embarrassment at this point

Losing his job too is extra

a reply to: ADAMandEVIL

I remember reading about this when the reports came out last year. Almost a year later and only now is something actually being done about it. Even then, i doubt anything substantial. It's not like RCMP doesn't have a long history of spying on Canadians. Just do a search for 'RCMP spying on Canadians' you'll get years worth of stuff.

a reply to: ADAMandEVIL

85% of the searches the RCMP used the system for were NOT related to "Child Exploitation" cases.

I guess this means something that the Judge ruled against them?

WTF were the 85% of searches on? *crickets


SnF