mmmmm dd, yyyy
Question: With the onset of FRT), what happens now to our privacy?
In the normal lives of people, they expose their facial image and personal data voluntarily or not. We fill out raffle forms and create Facebook accounts. We also allow ourselves to be photographed and documented when we get our driver’s licenses, as just one among several government regulatory requirements. In fact, FRT has already been implemented long before with CCTV, albeit crudely. Without high- resolution imaging and a database, it required a positive identification from a reliable person who is not always available. In effect, our privacy in public has already been compromised by CCTV but is being magnified exponentially with FRT. Instantaneous positive identification is now possible.
On scenario is that the government will intervene and will push for legislation that will control FRT’s privacy intrusion. On the other hand, it may not do anything considering FRT’s benefits to law enforcement.
The strongest driving forces for FRT are consumer marketing and law enforcement (Wall, 2015). The most likely scenario is that our privacy will be protected only from marketing intrusion and manipulation. Take the case of the US where there are current threats of internal violence from racism and the external threat of radical Muslim terrorism. The gravity of these threats will force the US government to favor security above all concerns, including privacy.
The government can still favor us keeping our privacy against Big Business. It can still grant our right to be asked if we can allow FRT to be use on us or not (Ashbrook, 2010). It is evident that FRT provides the information that can allow companies to unfairly manipulate consumers. With these forces at play regarding FRT, our efforts to safeguard our privacy can only be limited, not assured.
References
Ashbrook, T. (Interviewer) & Peterson, A., Bedoya, A. & Szabo, C. (Interviewees). (2010). The Computer Will (Literally) See You Now. Retrieved from wbur Website: http://www.wbur.org/onpoint/2015/06/18/facial-recognition-software-technology-scan
Wall, M. (2015, June 19). Is facial recognition tech really a threat to privacy?. BBC News. Retrieved July 10, 2016 from http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-33199275
