Milwaukee Police Considers Trading Mugshots for Facial Recognition Software
The facial recognition industry is facing scrutiny due to its ethical implications. A recent proposal in Milwaukee has ignited further debate: The Milwaukee Police Department is considering trading 2.5 million mugshots to a private company, Biometrica, in exchange for free access to their facial recognition software.
The potential deal, unveiled at a recent city meeting, involves Milwaukee police providing Biometrica with a vast collection of mugshots and jail records accumulated over decades. In return, the department would receive two complimentary search licenses for Biometrica's facial recognition technology. While Biometrica's intended use of the mugshots remains unconfirmed, it is highly probable that they will be used to train and refine their software. Facial recognition systems often rely on extensive datasets, sometimes obtained through questionable means.
Ethical Concerns and Potential for Bias
The proposal has raised significant ethical concerns, particularly regarding the potential for bias and discrimination. Facial recognition technology has demonstrated inaccuracies in identifying individuals with darker skin tones, especially women and non-binary individuals. This inherent bias can lead to wrongful arrests and misidentification, disproportionately affecting marginalized communities.
David Gwidt, a spokesperson for the American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin, emphasized that reliance on incorrect facial recognition results has already led to multiple wrongful arrests, with Black individuals being disproportionately affected. The absence of regulations regarding individual notification, consent, and opt-out options further exacerbates these concerns.
Wisconsin, like many states, lacks specific biometric privacy laws, leaving individuals vulnerable to the potential misuse of their facial data. Although mugshots are generally considered public records in Wisconsin, the ethical implications of using them to train surveillance technology remain a point of contention.
Data Security Risks
Beyond the ethical considerations, concerns have been raised about data security. Facial recognition companies are not immune to data breaches, which can expose individuals to identity theft and other security risks. Unlike passwords or other personal information, a person's face cannot be easily changed, making biometric data particularly sensitive.
Jeramie Scott, Senior Counsel at EPIC, highlighted the inherent irony of the proposed deal: Milwaukee police are contemplating offering millions of mugshots, likely disproportionately featuring people of color, to train a surveillance technology that will likely be used disproportionately on people of color. This, he argues, would exacerbate existing racial inequalities within the criminal justice system.
Given the lack of comprehensive federal regulation on facial recognition, and the absence of state-level regulations in Wisconsin, critics argue that the safest course of action would be for the Milwaukee police to refrain from using the technology altogether, especially in the absence of clear safeguards and limitations.
The local ACLU has called for a two-year pause on the implementation of any new surveillance technology in Milwaukee, along with the development of regulations for existing systems and opportunities for community input. While the Milwaukee Police Department has pledged to develop a policy to prevent arrests based solely on facial recognition matches, the absence of enforceable regulations raises concerns about accountability.
Source: Gizmodo