Australia is facing an unprecedented rise in its use of modern facial recognition
technology, yet the lack of federal regulation to prevent misusage of this innovation is causing
controversy and concerns about privacy among many. However, if done correctly, the country
could become a world leader in pioneering its use.
In fact, this facial recognition technology has already helped in the aftermath of
Australia’s bushfires in 2020 by providing disaster relief aid to those who have lost their
identification papers. However, the government’s usage of this technology regarding COVID-19 isolation puts the country as the only democracy to allow the enforcement of stay-at-home
procedures with facial recognition.
The United States cities of San Francisco, Oakland, and Somerville have temporarily
prohibited their police from employing facial recognition in light of COVID-19 guidelines.
Similarly, Amazon, Microsoft, IBM, and Google have announced that they will do the same
concerning their facial recognition technology for law enforcement agencies until their countries of operation enact a federal law.
But in Western Australia, this process looks different. Those who contract COVID-19 and
their close contacts must quarantine at home for seven days. While quarantined, the police
send periodic text messages to check their whereabouts and require them to send a selfie in
fifteen minutes. Using facial recognition technology and GPS tracking, they can determine
whether the subject is at home or not.
Still, this technology can discreetly track and identify those it comes across, like when
convenience store group 7-Eleven was caught collecting faceprints of 1.6 million Australian
customers. The company allegedly used this data to create demographic profiles and prevent
staff from boosting their ratings but did not receive a fine.
In 2019, a law was proposed to govern facial recognition technology, but a parliamentary
committee review found that it did not sufficiently protect privacy. A vital critic of the law was the Australian Human Rights Commissioner, Edward Santow.
“We’re now in the worst of all situations where there’s no dedicated law, so we’re dealing
with a few piecemeal protections that are not completely effective and are certainly not
comprehensive,” noted Santow. “And yet the technology is continuing to be deployed.”
Link to article: The nation where your ‘faceprint’ is already being tracked – BBC Future
technology, yet the lack of federal regulation to prevent misusage of this innovation is causing
controversy and concerns about privacy among many. However, if done correctly, the country
could become a world leader in pioneering its use.
In fact, this facial recognition technology has already helped in the aftermath of
Australia’s bushfires in 2020 by providing disaster relief aid to those who have lost their
identification papers. However, the government’s usage of this technology regarding COVID-19 isolation puts the country as the only democracy to allow the enforcement of stay-at-home
procedures with facial recognition.
The United States cities of San Francisco, Oakland, and Somerville have temporarily
prohibited their police from employing facial recognition in light of COVID-19 guidelines.
Similarly, Amazon, Microsoft, IBM, and Google have announced that they will do the same
concerning their facial recognition technology for law enforcement agencies until their countries of operation enact a federal law.
But in Western Australia, this process looks different. Those who contract COVID-19 and
their close contacts must quarantine at home for seven days. While quarantined, the police
send periodic text messages to check their whereabouts and require them to send a selfie in
fifteen minutes. Using facial recognition technology and GPS tracking, they can determine
whether the subject is at home or not.
Still, this technology can discreetly track and identify those it comes across, like when
convenience store group 7-Eleven was caught collecting faceprints of 1.6 million Australian
customers. The company allegedly used this data to create demographic profiles and prevent
staff from boosting their ratings but did not receive a fine.
In 2019, a law was proposed to govern facial recognition technology, but a parliamentary
committee review found that it did not sufficiently protect privacy. A vital critic of the law was the Australian Human Rights Commissioner, Edward Santow.
“We’re now in the worst of all situations where there’s no dedicated law, so we’re dealing
with a few piecemeal protections that are not completely effective and are certainly not
comprehensive,” noted Santow. “And yet the technology is continuing to be deployed.”
Link to article: The nation where your ‘faceprint’ is already being tracked – BBC Future
