Orwellian nightmare or brave new world?
Natasha Bernal
Around the world, a flurry of recent deals has added to a growing buzz of excitement surrounding facial recognition technology.
Earlier this week, Horizon Robotics, a Chinese artificial intelligence company which develops facial recognition software, raised up to $1 billion (NZ$1.4b) from US tech giant Intel and other blue-chip investors.
From Israel to Shanghai and Silicon Valley to the UK, big money is flooding in while a host of start-ups are racing to master the technology, which could open the door to a host of applications.
From law enforcement to banking and from retail to healthcare, the market for facial recognition technology is expected to quadruple in size to US$14.95b by 2026, up from US$4b last year.
That represents a big opportunity for investors. But as the demand for the technology flourishes, the jury is still out on how it should be applied in the public sphere and the ethical concerns that arise from it.
The debate may be too late. China is already rolling out the technology on a huge scale.
As well as its use of state-backed surveillance for everything from jaywalking at pedestrian crossings to keeping tabs on potential terrorists, private Chinese companies like Alibaba are experimenting with novel uses.
At a KFC in the city of Hangzhou, diners can pay for their chicken simply by flashing a grin, using Alibaba’s new ‘‘smile to pay’’ technology.
Other countries are catching up fast. UK-based facial verification company iProov gained a new Home Office contract that would allow people to speed up the passport process at the border during the Brexit process. But the growing proliferation of facial recognition is provoking a backlash.
‘‘There is a lack of transparency about its use and is a real risk that the public safety benefits from the use of facial recognition technology will not be gained if public trust is not addressed,’’ wrote Elizabeth Denham, Britain’s Information Commissioner, in a recent blog post.
Robin Tombs, chief executive of London-based biometric company Yoti says the appetite for facial recognition is growing fast for commercial reasons across a whole host of sectors in the UK, particularly retail and travel.
‘‘It’s no surprise facial recognition and biometrics have been gaining traction over the past few years – they offer simple, fast and secure access, and greater protection of our online accounts and personal information. Individuals can use their unique biometrics, such as their fingerprint or face, instead of passwords and PINs – which can easily be forgotten.’’
Major banks such as HSBC, Barclays and Lloyds have already launched facial recognition software to provide an additional layer of security to their online banking services.
But as demand for it grows there is little new regulation to govern the way facial recognition software should be applied. That explains why Britain’s police have faced widespread criticism during trials of the technology over the last few years.
Activist organisations Liberty and Big Brother Watch are both launching legal claims against police forces, citing privacy issues as their main objection.
Part of the problem, critics say, is the far-reaching impact this technology can have. The estimated 5.9m CCTV cameras in the UK, including 500,000 in London alone, already provide the potential for an Orwellian nightmare.
The difference is that this image capturing technology is linked to different online databases and can immediately identify bystanders, as well as provide markers about their routine and appearance in real time without their consent.
For the UK-based facial recognition companies, surveillance isn’t the issue: their objective is to adapt services to make them more efficient.
In Britain, for millions of people the most obvious example of the technology is its use at the Heathrow Terminal 5 e-passport gates, where a machine scans passports and faces in record time to cut down on queuing.
For now the technology is supervised by immigration officers who can override the computer’s decision when necessary, says Nick Whitehead, the head of strategic partnerships at Aurora, the firm that provides the software to Heathrow.
Privacy issues may be a concern in general, but not in the airport, he says. ‘‘The stats show that the majority are happy for that [a photo] to happen.’’
The main barrier is that people see it as a threat for their job, Whitehead explains.
‘‘If we – the public – are to trust one another digitally, verification technology will be a critical means for sustaining faith,’’ says Andrew Bud, the founder and chief executive of iProov.
His company proposes using facial recognition to verify people’s identity in the same way as a passport or ID card do now.
‘‘From a privacy there are no issues.’’
Group
At a KFC in the city of Hangzhou, diners can pay for their chicken simply by flashing a grin, using Alibaba’s new ‘‘smile to pay’’ technology.
standpoint, – Telegraph