PHOENIX — France became the latest country to demand Clearview AI delete data even as the United States seems to be on the verge of issuing the facial recognition software a patent.
Clearview AI says it has scraped publicly accessible photos from all over the Internet, including popular social media sites like Facebook and Instagram. The service claims to have billions of photos available to be searched.
In a statement, Clearview AI CEO Hoan Ton-That said, “Clearview AI is used only by law enforcement for after-the-crime investigations. We comply with all applicable laws. We only collect what is publicly available on the internet. We are proud of our role in helping law enforcement solve heinous crimes, including financial fraud and crimes against children.”
However, countries like Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and now France are trying to limit Clearview's operations. France is demanding the company should cease collecting data on people in French territory and delete existing data - claiming, in part, the company's procedures violated privacy rights.
In statements to 12 News, Clearview AI denied any violations. In the US, Clearview AI is offered to law enforcement.
“We don’t see a lot of strong privacy regulation in the US as compared to Europe,” Mark Stamford, Cyber Security Expert and founder of OccamSec, said.
According to Buzzfeed News, 19 Arizona law enforcement agencies have had at least one use of the service. Some show some agencies used less than five searches. Some departments told Buzzfeed they used a testing period.
In April, we asked multiple Valley police departments if they use or have used the technology.
Scottsdale Police told 12 News in an email they used the software on a 30-day free trial basis approximately two years ago but decided against making a purchase.
Phoenix Police said in an email, "The Phoenix Police Department does not have a contract with this company, and I am not aware of any arrests made with the help of Clearview technology."
In an email, Glendale PD said they are still using the service and it has led to an arrest.
Glendale PD described the case it was used for: "Individuals in a stolen car were involved in a hit and run accident where they ditched the vehicle and then went into a local business and attempted to steal the keys/car of an employee there, and also robbed several patrons."
"The female suspect was apprehended and stated that she only knew the first name of the male suspect. Upon searching the stolen car, there were several IDs found which had different names, but the same picture of a male who matched the suspect description."
However, Stamford worries that AI is not smart enough.
"It's not like the movies," Stamford said. “Once you say there are no rules, like if you are trying to stop crime, AI has no clue what to do.”
In a statement, Clearview AI claims its service is more than 99% accurate.
Stamford believes in the US, the prevalence of technology like Clearview AI will be decided by its effectiveness and the public's reaction.
“Either Clearview will be picked up and take off or there will be a groundswell of people saying we don’t want this” Stamford said.
The reality is we don’t know what’s next. The battle over online privacy is still relatively new and will be decided in the coming years.
"We don’t know what's going to happen. I think we are so in the infancy of this that any prediction is going to be wrong," Stamford said.
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