In the United States, a very controversial scheme has emerged. Clearview AI, a company that deals with creating algorithms that recognize human faces, has come up with an idea that has caused a huge scratch in society.
Highly controversial in the United States and around the world
Clearview AI doesn’t hide that it aims for very fast goals international expansion. The company is growing rapidly in the United States, but it also has its first successful companies abroad. Now, however, the company appears to be over A step too far. Paying no attention to legal regulations in other countries, Clearview AI has shared a controversial scheme with its investors.
The company told customers it’s on its way to much more Collect 100 billion images of human faces in its database. This process will be completed within the next year. According to experts, such huge resources will be enough “to identify almost all people in the world.”
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Clearview AI has been wearing a patch for a long time The world’s largest database of human faces. According to reports, the company currently circulates more than ten billion images, which are public and can be downloaded from the Internet. The company cooperates on a daily basis, for example with law enforcement agencies, helping them to compare photos.
Interestingly, in December, the company created a presentation that was to summarize the outgoing year. We can find in it the information that Clearview AI already has 11 times more face recognition database than any other unit. The company included both governmental and non-governmental levels in this list.
The Washington Post’s investigation into Clearview AI
journalist Washington Post – Drew Harwell Via his Twitter, he reported other interesting moves by Clearview AI. According to the reporter, in the United States alone the company already has more than three thousand customers. These are security units like FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation) if ice (Immigration and Customs).
Having raised $50 million from investors, the company can now Increase your strength. This means that it will be able to collect up to 100 billion images of human faces in its database, create new products and expand its business outside the United States.
Quote from The Washington Post
In addition to facial recognition, Clearview AI also wants development in other areas. The company plans to handle license plate identification, motion tracking and fingerprint recognition without having to touch the plate. In January, Americans reported that a new patent for identifying the human face according to sellers was working “Almost flawless”.
Legal regulations around the world say no
Naturally, after reports of the company’s expansion into the rest of the world, criticism surfaced on the Internet. This wouldn’t be the first time that Clearview AI has been forced to do so Combat the pressures of society.
In 2020, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a lawsuit The company was accused of violating the privacy of citizens. The case went to court after New York times Reveal the detailed operation of tracking and monitoring systems.
Then – in November of last year, he came out loud about Clearview AI in the UK. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) accused the company of using several photos of the kingdom’s citizens in its database. According to the bureau, the images may have come from social media and were collected there without the authors’ knowledge. At that time, Clearview AI was threatened with a fine of 17 million pounds for a flagrant violation of the provisions relating to the protection of personal data.
Clearview AI also covered in Australia. Also in November last year, local authorities demanded that the company stop collecting photos of Australian citizens and delete data already in its possession. Apart from Great Britain and the country of kangaroos, the company’s policy has been fiercely discussed in Canada. Last February, the Federal Privacy Commissioner declared Clearview AI operations in Canada illegal. According to a government employee, the company created a database without the consent of citizens.
In Europe, too, there are indications that similar technologies are not welcome. last year European Parliament He has publicly called for a ban on the use of technology featuring mass surveillance. It was then that facial recognition systems were discussed. At the time, MEPs pointed out the threats this advanced technology and human rights could pose.
source: Silicon Republic
