Uber Faces Legal Action Over ‘racially Discriminatory’ Facial Recognition ID Checks
(Tech Crunch, Oct 06, 2021)
Ride-hailing giant Uber is facing a legal challenge over its use of real-time facial recognition technology in a driver and courier identity check system that it uses in the U.K. The App Drivers & Couriers Union (ADCU) announced the legal action Tuesday, alleging that Uber’s biometric identity checks discriminate against people of color. The union said it’s taking the action after the unfair dismissal of a former Uber driver, Imran Javaid Raja, and a former Uber Eats courier, Pa Edrissa Manjang, following failed checks using the facial recognition technology.
European Parliament Calls For A Ban On Facial Recognition
(Politico, Oct 06, 2021)
The European Parliament today called for a ban on police use of facial recognition technology in public places, and on predictive policing, a controversial practice that involves using AI tools in hopes of profiling potential criminals before a crime is even committed. In a resolution adopted overwhelmingly in favor, MEPs also asked for a ban on private facial recognition databases, like the ones used by the controversial company Clearview AI. The Parliament also supports the European Commission's attempt in its AI bill to ban social scoring systems, such as the ones launched by China that rate citizens' trustworthiness based on their behavior. “This is a huge win for all European citizens,” said Petar Vitanov (S&D), the resolution's author.
Canadians Asked To Comment On Draft Guidance For Police Use Of Facial Recognition
(Channel Daily News, Oct 06, 2021)
Canadian police departments and interested groups have 10 days to submit written opinions on the proposed privacy obligations of law enforcement agencies that want to use facial recognition technology.
The draft guidance was made public almost four months ago by federal and provincial privacy commissioners when federal privacy commissioner Daniel Therrien said the RCMP’s use of facial recognition technology by Clearview Ai violated the federal Privacy Act.
In a notice issued Tuesday, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada asked the public to answer some or all of a number of questions on that guidance, and draft guidance issued at the same time on the legal and policy framework for police use of facial recognition more generally, before it issues firm guidance.
Open Sesame, Says Google... To Voice Identification: Speech ID Adds Biometric Security To Call-centre Bots
(The Register, Oct 08, 2021)
Google has launched a speech identification system aimed at commercial call centres – leaving some biometric security questions unanswered at the same time. According to the Chocolate Factory, Speaker ID is a way of identifying callers using just their voice, seemingly avoiding annoying and time-consuming ID check from the call centre agents. It even works, so Google says, without requiring a special text or password – voices can be identified from a sample of natural speech.
Heathrow Passengers Delayed For Hours After Biometric Passport Gates Fail
(The Guardian, Oct 08, 2021)
Airline passengers reported delays of up to four hours as airports across the UK were hit by a second e-gate technical fault within two weeks. Travellers arriving at Heathrow were forced to either wait in long queues in terminals or remain on aircraft. Gatwick and Edinburgh airports were also affected. E-gates, managed by UK Border Force, allow travellers with biometric passports to pass through border control without a manual inspection. A systems failure caused e-gates to stop working for several hours on 24 September, so passengers had to wait to have their travel documents inspected by staff.
CBP Expands Simplified Arrival To Sweetgrass, Eastport Ports Of Entry
(Shore News Network, Oct 08, 2021)
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced today the expansion of biometric facial comparison technology to the pedestrian border crossings at Sweetgrass and Eastport, Idaho, as part of CBP’s land border innovation efforts. “I am pleased to announce the deployment of biometric facial comparison technology to these additional border crossings along the Northern Border,” said Seattle Director of Field Operations Brian Humphrey. “This enhanced technology will further secure and streamline travel while providing a safe, touchless identification process for travelers.”
Idemia Delivers Biometric Technology For Oakland International Airport
(Passenger Terminal Today, Oct 08, 2021)
Biometric provider Idemia has announced that it will deliver its identity verification technology technology, Mface, to Oakland International Airport (OAK), California. Mface will leverage facial recognition and 3D video tracking to identify a continuous flow of people walking through OAK’s Terminal 1 in real time. This technology can be deployed as a standalone unit, desktop unit or as a ready-to-integrate OEM kit and will be used to validate travelers departing the US. The Mface technology is being implemented in response to the US’s federal mandate for biometric identification of international travelers. US citizens can choose to opt out of the facial image capture and instead be processed by airline agents with a passport and boarding pass.
