According to a Huffington Post article published on July 19, 40 law enforcement agencies will soon be using an i-phone accessory that has facial recognition software. They will be able to scan a suspect's face and match the face with a photo in criminal databases. The software is called MORIS (Mobile Offender Recognition and Imformation System) and costs $3000. The i-phone must be held 5-6 inches from the face to scan the person's iris and uses either facial recognition or the actually color of the eyes or iris to determine if the suspect has a criminal record. So far, only information from current inmates is in the database. However, time will tell if driver's license photos will be added.
This obviously is raising some serious privacy issues. Google CEO Eric Schmidt states in the article that Google had created facial recognition software, but after looking at it, they stopped. The article doesn't go into detail on why Google decided to stop, but does provide a link to an interview with Schmidt that details the privacy issues. I understand law enforcement agencies wanting this software, because it seems that it would make identifying suspects easier. However, it does seem like a gray area and some serious issues may occur. For one, how will they actually use the software. Meaning how will these agencies determine who is a suspect, and therefore who to scan? Additionally, what if this technology gets into the wrong hands? It's safe to say that not all law enforcement personnel are upstanding individuals. However, only time will tell how this new device will be used and if it will actually work. It will be an even more interesting debate if driver's license photos become part of the database. We will have to see what happens.
No comments:
Post a Comment