New Orleans City Council Regulates Facial Recognition
(Governing, Aug 09, 2022)
Two weeks after the New Orleans City Council opened the door for police to use facial recognition, members passed another ordinance Thursday aimed at creating new restrictions and reporting requirements on the controversial technology. The new law, which passed on a 6-0 vote, prohibits using the technology to investigate consensual sexual acts between adults, or violations of Louisiana's criminal abortion law. Yet at the 11th hour, the ordinance was shorn of its most potent provision requiring judicial approval for facial recognition searches. The American Civil Liberties Union of Louisiana and dozens of members of the public supported the legislation, but even a council sponsor said she felt it doesn't go far enough to check police power. "I don't think it's perfect yet, but I think it's better," said Council President Helena Moreno.
Face-Recognition Software That Lifts the Veil
(TechXplore, Aug 09, 2022)
Face-recognition technology is advancing apace and has applications in security and biometrics, marketing, education, criminal investigation, and many other areas. It can now not only recognize the person but can ascertain the expression on their face. Research in the International Journal of Biometrics tackles the limitations of face recognition software when the person's face is partly obscured, by a veil or protective face mask, for instance. The researchers, based in Hungary, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the U.K. and the U.S. report a facial recognition accuracy with their deep-learning approach that is 99.95% accurate for facial recognition even for a person wearing a niqab, which covers most of the face except the eyes. The software is 99.9% accurate for gender recognition and determination of age. It can recognize whether a veiled person or person wearing a COVID mask is or is not smiling, by analyzing the eyes, with 80.9% accuracy. Tests were carried out on an image database of 150 people, 41 male and 109 female subjects aged from 8 to 78 years old.
Behavioral Biometrics Can Crack Down on Flawed Password Sharing Practices
(AITHORITY, Aug 09, 2022)
Netflix customers are no strangers to sharing their account passwords with others – according to Netflix, more than 100 million households are using a shared password. For years, Netflix has encouraged and allowed people to share passwords to get their brand name out, but as the company is trying to grow and gain profits, they are trying to come up with new ways to combat password sharing without adding too much friction for users. The company recently implemented new test features in foreign markets; both “Extra Member” and “Profile Transfer” give members full access to the main Netflix account for a fee or allow users to transfer their viewing history to a new paid account, respectively. However, there are some flaws to these new features that can cause trouble for users incorrectly marked as unauthorized and the streaming service’s customer service representatives who may have to handle increasing disputes. Therefore, how can Netflix truly tell if a user is part of the primary account? The answer may lie within behavioral biometrics that can positively identify if a user is who they claim to be.
The Truth About the Data Contained on Your Biometric Passport
(MSN, Aug 09, 2022)
The once trusty British passport has suffered something of a fall from grace in recent months. Getting hold of a new one can be gruelling, with renewals taking as long as 10 weeks. Holidays have been ruined by a quirk that means some older British passports were, until recently, deemed invalid for trips to the EU. An inability to use the automated eGates at certain ports and airports has created interminable queues. And now there’s the news that the Home Office has been losing three times as many passports as usual. The last of these problems raises an interesting question – one that will occupy the minds of anyone who has mislaid their travel document (or had it mislaid by the Home Office): exactly what information is contained on your UK passport?
Iveda wins $3M in video surveillance, facial recognition contracts in Taiwan, raises $5M
(Biometric Update, Aug 09, 2022)
U.S.-based Iveda has won $3 million in contracts from Taiwan’s government for video surveillance systems, including facial recognition.The Nasdaq-traded company has also announced a $5 million private placement. The four contracts were won by Iveda’s subsidiary in Taiwan, formerly known as MEGAsys. They cover a security system at 61 locations around the country, which could eventually be extended to 300 locations, as well as an upgrade to the Taiwan Stock Exchange’s existing video security system. The upgrade includes access control and facial recognition capabilities.
Identity Week America, October 4 - 5, 2022
(Terrapinn, Aug 09, 2022)
IDENTITY WEEK is the most important identity event in the USA. IDENTITY WEEK is a conference and exhibition bringing together the brightest minds in the identity sector to promote innovation, new thinking, and more effective identity solutions. Key areas of focus include secure physical credentials, digital identity, and advanced authentication technologies, such as biometrics.
