Hi-Tech Crime CRIM30375

Facebook ten year challenge: how our need to belong trumps our distrust of social media ra2studio via Shutterstock Ana Isabel Domingos Canhoto , Brunel University London When the ten year challenge began doing the rounds on social media, people rushed to post profile pictures of themselves from 2009, side by side with one from 2019, to highlight how much they had changed (or not) in the meantime. It is estimated that more than 5.2m social media users participated in this challenge. It started on Facebook towards the end of January 2019, and it didn’t take long for experts like tech author Kate O’Neil to suggest that the trend could have harmful consequences. Specifically, by posting the now-and-then photos with the #10yearchallenge hashtag, social media users were, possibly, helping to train facial recognition software to recognise – or predict – age-related changes. Facebook has denied that it is behind the viral trend or that it had...

Facebook needs regulation – here's why it should be done by algorithms Shutterstock Emanuele Giovannetti , Anglia Ruskin University Facebook has been likened to a “digital gangster” by a critical parliamentary report into disinformation and fake news. One witness in the 18-month inquiry into the way digital platforms have transformed the flow of information describes the current use of technology as “hijacking our minds and society”. The report, commissioned by the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport select committee, concludes that “political choices might be influenced by online information”. It goes on to say: We must use technology, instead, to free our minds and use regulation to restore democratic accountability. We must make sure that people stay in charge of the machines. It is an indisputable conclusion. But there is a lot less certainty around what this regulation should look like. I would argue that the algorithms th...

Why regulating facial recognition technology is so problematic - and necessary There are many questions over how facial recognition technology can impinge on people’s privacy rights and whether it will worsen discrimination in policing practices. Shutterstock Liz Campbell , Monash University The use of automated facial recognition technology (FRT) is becoming more commonplace globally, in particular in China, the UK and now Australia. FRT means we can identify individuals based on an analysis of their geometric facial features , drawing a comparison between an algorithm created from the captured image and one already stored, such as a driving licence, custody image or social media account. FRT has numerous private and public-sector applications when identity verification is needed. These include accessing a secure area, unlocking a mobile device or boarding a plane. It’s also able to recognise people’s moods, reactions and, apparently,...

How facial recognition technology aids police Technology can only do so much – it still needs human input. Arten Oleshko/Shutterstock Bethan Davies , Cardiff University ; Andrew Dawson , Cardiff University , and Martin Innes , Cardiff University Police officers’ ability to recognise and locate individuals with a history of committing crime is vital to their work. In fact, it is so important that officers believe possessing it is fundamental to the craft of effective street policing, crime prevention and investigation. However, with the total police workforce falling by almost 20% since 2010 and recorded crime rising , police forces are turning to new technological solutions to help enhance their capability and capacity to monitor and track individuals about whom they have concerns. One such technology is Automated Facial Recognition (known as AFR). This works by analysing key facial features, generating a mathematical representation of ...

Police use of facial recognition technology must be governed by stronger legislation Joe Purshouse , University of East Anglia and Liz Campbell , Monash University Automated facial recognition technology has been used at a number of crowd events in England and Wales over the past two years to identify suspects and prevent crime. The technology can recognise people by comparing their facial features in real time with an image already stored on a “watch list”, which could be from a police database or social media account. Such technology is becoming increasingly popular for police forces around the world. Where successful, it can have positive and headline-grabbing effects – for example tracing missing children in India . But facial recognition technology is controversial, with research showing that it can be inaccurate and discriminatory. San Francisco is even considering a complete ban on its use by police. Several British police forces have ongoing facial recognition trial...