US lawmakers intend to curtail facial recognition

US lawmakers are moving ahead with efforts to ban facial recognition software even as the technology helps identify supporters of President Donald Trump who ransacked their workplace and forced them to evacuate in January.

Researchers and law enforcement have been running photographs from the January 6 siege of the Capitol through facial recognition, which looks for similar faces in databases of mugshots, social media headshots or other images.

“It’s a great tool,” said Michael Sheldon, research associate at the nonprofit Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab, whose mission includes protecting democratic institutions.

Sheldon said he provided the FBI possible names of several people in the violent mob thanks to a facial recognition program he purchased.

Senator Ed Markey said in a statement that the technology may not be worth the risks. Racial justice activists have warned that facial recognition can perpetuate discriminatory policing and constant tracking could become the norm.

“We’ve seen that in the wake of past crises innocent Americans have been subjected to increased problematic surveillance,” Markey said.

He called on authorities to “keep the public safe and hold criminals accountable without relying on invasive tools that are proven to have serious accuracy and bias issues.”

Whether the FBI has used facial recognition is unclear.