surveillance Archives

Clearview AI used by US police for almost 1M searches

Facial recognition firm Clearview AI has revealed that it has run almost a million searches for US police.

Facial recognition technology is a controversial topic, and for good reason. Clearview AI's technology allows law enforcement to upload a photo of a suspect's face and find matches in a database of billions of images it has collected.

Clearview AI CEO Hoan Ton-That disclosed in an interview with the BBC that the firm has scraped 30 billion images from platforms such...

28 March 2023 | Applications

Axon’s AI ethics board resign after TASER drone announcement

The majority of Axon’s AI ethics board have resigned after the company announced that it’s developing taser-equipped drones.

In response to yet another shooting in a US school, Axon founder and CEO Rick Smith began thinking about how the company could help put a stop to the all too regular occurrence.

The shooting kicked off the usual debate over whether stricter gun laws are needed. Unfortunately, we all know nothing is likely to really change and we’ll be back to...

7 June 2022 | Companies

Clearview AI agrees to restrict sales of its faceprint database

Clearview AI has proposed to restrict sales of its faceprint database as part of a settlement with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

The controversial facial recognition firm caused a stir due to scraping billions of images of people across the web without their consent. As a result, the company has faced the ire of regulators around the world and numerous court cases.

One court case filed against Clearview AI was by the ACLU in 2020, claiming that it violated...

10 May 2022 | Applications

AI in the justice system threatens human rights and civil liberties

The House of Lords Justice and Home Affairs Committee has determined the proliferation of AI in the justice system is a threat to human rights and civil liberties.

A report published by the committee today highlights the rapid pace of AI developments that are largely happening out of the public eye. Alarmingly, there seems to be a focus on rushing the technology into production with little concern about its potential negative impact.

Baroness Hamwee, Chair of the Justice...

30 March 2022 | Artificial Intelligence

Ukraine harnesses Clearview AI to uncover assailants and identify the fallen

Ukraine is using Clearview AI’s facial recognition software to uncover Russian assailants and identify Ukrainians who’ve sadly lost their lives in the conflict.

The company’s chief executive, Hoan Ton-That, told Reuters that Ukraine’s defence ministry began using the software on Saturday.

Clearview AI’s facial recognition system is controversial but indisputably powerful—using billions of images scraped from the web to identify just about anyone. Ton-That...

14 March 2022 | Artificial Intelligence

Clearview AI is close to obtaining a patent despite regulatory crackdown

Clearview AI is reportedly just a bank transfer away from receiving a US patent for its controversial facial recognition technology.

Politico reports that Clearview AI has been sent a “notice of allowance” by the US Patent and Trademark Office. The notice means that it will be granted the patent once it pays the administration fees.

Clearview AI offers one of the most powerful facial recognition systems in the world. In the wake of the US Capitol raid, Clearview AI...

6 December 2021 | Artificial Intelligence

Clearview AI could be fined £17M from UK privacy watchdog

Clearview AI is back in hot water, this time from the UK's Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).

The controversial facial recognition giant has caught the attention of global privacy regulators and campaigners for its practice of scraping personal photos from the web for its system without explicit consent.

Clearview AI is expected to have scraped over 10 billion photos.

“Common law has never recognised a right to privacy for your face,” Clearview AI...

30 November 2021 | Companies

SenseTime prepares to list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange

Chinese AI giant SenseTime has received regulatory approval to list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKSE).

SenseTime is the world’s most-funded AI firm and has attracted large investments in part due to providing technology for the Chinese government’s vast surveillance network.

The company’s Viper system aims to process and analyse over 100,000 simultaneous real-time streams from traffic cameras, ATMs, and more to automatically tag and keep track of...

24 November 2021 | Artificial Intelligence

MEPs back AI mass surveillance ban for the EU

MEPs from the European Parliament have adopted a resolution in favour of banning AI-powered mass surveillance and facial recognition in public spaces.

With a 71 vote majority, MEPs sided with Petar Vitanov’s report that argued AI must not be allowed to encroach on fundamental rights.

An S&D party member, Vitanov pointed out that AI has not yet proven to be a wholly reliable tool on its own.

He cited examples of individuals being denied social benefits...

7 October 2021 | Ethics & Society

How AI video surveillance impacts the way businesses approach security

Security cameras are a great way to keep an eye on commercial spaces without being on-site, especially after-hours. While security is a 24/7 business, most organizations can’t afford to monitor their systems at all hours of the day and night. Hiring a third-party provider to monitor is expensive, and even with eyes on screens, human error still results in missed reports, slow response, and increased insurance and liability costs.

24/7 video monitoring was previously...