From "N.Y. State Orders School District to Halt Plans to Use Facial Recognition"
The Hill (05/30/19) Rodrigo, Chris Mills
The New York State Education Department on Thursday ordered the Lockport City School District to suspend its planned deployment of facial-recognition tech slated for next week. The department said the system had not been approved for testing, "until we receive information that assures us that student information will be properly protected."
The technology is meant to be used to identify if guns or flagged persons enter school grounds. A New York Education Department spokesperson said the agency is in the process of reviewing Lockport's facial recognition system and has not found sufficient protections for students' privacy or data.
The program has drawn backlash from critics who point to studies which find inaccuracies in facial recognition technology, especially for women and people of color.
The New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) last year sent a letter to the New York State Education Department that asked officials to halt the project.
State Assembly Member Monica Wallace (D) has introduced a bill that would effectively force Lockport to stop using the system.
Throughout the nation, there has been pushback against facial recognition software. A bipartisan group of lawmakers in Washington last week came out against the widespread deployment of facial recognition technology, signaling that they plan to draft legislation that would curb or halt its implementation.
Earlier this month, San Francisco became the first city to ban the technology entirely.
The Hill (05/30/19) Rodrigo, Chris Mills
The New York State Education Department on Thursday ordered the Lockport City School District to suspend its planned deployment of facial-recognition tech slated for next week. The department said the system had not been approved for testing, "until we receive information that assures us that student information will be properly protected."
The technology is meant to be used to identify if guns or flagged persons enter school grounds. A New York Education Department spokesperson said the agency is in the process of reviewing Lockport's facial recognition system and has not found sufficient protections for students' privacy or data.
The program has drawn backlash from critics who point to studies which find inaccuracies in facial recognition technology, especially for women and people of color.
The New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) last year sent a letter to the New York State Education Department that asked officials to halt the project.
State Assembly Member Monica Wallace (D) has introduced a bill that would effectively force Lockport to stop using the system.
Throughout the nation, there has been pushback against facial recognition software. A bipartisan group of lawmakers in Washington last week came out against the widespread deployment of facial recognition technology, signaling that they plan to draft legislation that would curb or halt its implementation.
Earlier this month, San Francisco became the first city to ban the technology entirely.
RSS Feed
