Embedded + Algorithmic Bias

Analog Photographic Bias - kodak film

Facial Recognition + Identification Systems - Digital

Why Does it Matter? Let’s Zoom + Enhance

The Photograph as Evidence

From Vox Recode Article 2019

…But the reality is, as many as one in four police departments across the US can access facial recognition according to the Center on Privacy and Technology at Georgetown Law. And at least for now, it’s often in more routine criminal investigation

Amazon’s Rekognition tool in particular has been criticized for displaying bias after the ACLU ran a test on the software that misidentified 28 members of Congress as criminals, disproportionately providing false matches for black and Latino lawmakers. Amazon has said that the correct settings weren’t used in the ACLU’s test because the organization set the acceptable confidence threshold to 80 percent — although it was later reported that this is the default setting in the software, and one that some police departments seem to be using in training materials….

From CNET 2019

When images caught on surveillance cameras are too blurry or don't show enough of a person's face, the New York Police Department has used pictures of celebrities who look like the suspect to make matches with its facial recognition program, the researchers found.

In April 2017, for instance, the NYPD used a photo of actor Woody Harrelson in its facial recognition search to find a suspect and make an arrest. The man was suspected of stealing a beer from a CVS, according to the report. In another case, it used a photo of a New York Knicks player to search for a man wanted for assault in Brooklyn, the researchers found….

…Records showed that the NYPD made more than 2,800 arrests from facial recognition in the first five and a half years it was in use.

When there were no clear images available, the NYPD, as well as police in about 15 states, were allowed to use sketches instead. That includes police in Maryland, Virginia, Arizona, Florida and Oregon.