Face Scanners

[kmguru]

NEWS

A leading maker of facial recognition software is calling for federal regulation of the controversial technology to avoid misuse.

The technology, which converts facial images into an easily compiled and searched numerical code, has been criticized by privacy advocates who say the scans amount to facial frisking.

"Like all powerful technologies, it should be used responsibly," said Frances Zelazny, a spokeswoman for Visionics Corporation. "We believe systemic oversight is the best way to ensure our principles are translated into responsible policies and uses of technologies."

The technology first gained public notoriety in January, when Tampa, Florida, police used it to scan the faces of unsuspecting football fans at the Super Bowl and compare their mugs with terrorists and other criminals.

http://www.wired.com/news/privacy/0,1848,45687,00.html

 

[wet1]

I seem to remember reading about this a year or so ago. The software people were demonstrating the methods behind how to get facial recognition from different facial structures and expressions, the basic types, and the problems associated with it. At the time it made for interesting reading. Never would I have thought the applied technique would be so used. (Gap in the leap of applied thought) So next time you go to get groceries you could be on candid camera. Or the next time you board for a train or plane. Technology is outpacing laws, which is no secret I suppose. It seems you are looking at the next generation replacement to fingerprint identification. At the time they had used the facial recognition as the idea of id'ing who you were to access your bank account.