Amid Privacy Fears, Police Across the Nation Will Roll Out Face-Recognizing iPhone Tech This Year

Here is one thing Back to the Future got right. Now where is my flying car!?

There was a write up on Wired in 2008

"Militant suspects in Iraq and Afghanistan don’t just get their irises scanned, or their fingerprints taken"

...

And yet another

"Don’t bother with the iris scanner or the fingerprinting machine. Leave the satellite-enabled locators and tell-tale scents back on the base, military manhunters. If an Air Force plan works out as planned, all you’ll need to track your prey is a single camera, snapping a few seconds of footage from far, far away."

...

The scary thing is then, people commented that this was only the field test in Afghanistan whose ultimate target is for here in the good old USofA. And now it look as if this is EXACTLY the case. So now tools used for war and combat are now making their way for use on you and I. Smile citizen, you are public enemy #1.

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"If Tyranny and Oppression come to this land it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy" -James Madison

“It is a peculiarity of the development of American fascism that at the present stage it comes forward principally in the guise of an opposition to fascism, which it accuses of being an “un-American” trend imported from abroad.” – Georgi Dimitrov

“When and if fascism comes to America it will not be labeled ‘made in Germany’; it will not be marked with a swastika; it will not even be called fascism; it will be called, of course, ‘Americanism’” – An uncredited New York Times reporter

"It is sobering to reflect that one of the best ways to get yourself a reputation as a dangerous citizen these days is to go about repeating the very phrases which our founding fathers used in the struggle for independence." — Charles A. Beard

@ThisNameTaken

"The scary thing is then, people commented that this was only the field test in Afghanistan whose ultimate target is for here in the good old USofA. And now it look as if this is EXACTLY the case. So now tools used for war and combat are now making their way for use on you and I. Smile citizen, you are public enemy #1."

You are way off base on this one. What are you scared about? Are you a criminal hiding from the law? Are you so paranoid that you don't want police to be able to identify you if you forgot your wallet and get pulled over for a traffic citation? Would you prefer to go to jail if you couldn't prove you identity?

Can you explain to me how your brain works ..or doesn't work in this instance. Your whole post comes off very paranoid and makes you sound like a douche.

Welcome to the future btw.

Ah yes, the classic “if you are doing nothing wrong” argument. I would suspect you are all for implanting RFID chips too. Like Big Brother watching you wipe your arse too? Wait, I bet you like TSA agents givin you that anal probe eh??? Yeah... thats it.

Ever see minority report? How long until these cameras are on every corner, reporting everyone’s location ALL the time – to government and of course, advertisers. Instant credit score when you walk through the door at the local retail store? Right back at ya – welcome to the future.

I suppose you don’t mind military technology pointed at you? If that is the case please volunteer to be the test target for the Navy’s rail gun. I’m sure they would love to see what happens on a live target. After all, you don’t mind the same technology that is used on terrorists, used on yourself.

My brain? How about YOU use YOUR brain and READ! That’s a novel thought. If I am so off base here then why does it start “A controversial piece of facial recognition technology”?? I know! Perhaps because it IS controversial. If I am so off base here then why are “privacy and civil liberties advocates crying foul”?? . If I am so off base here then why are “plenty of people concerned with privacy and Constitutional issues.” Call me one of them.

You can believe all you want that “it requires consent.” And if you don’t consent you’ll simply be taserd… or choked slamed into submission (read the news much? how about the guy choke slamed for dancing at the Jefferson and arrested for non-crime??).

You can believe all you want “The facial recognition technology requires a frontal facial image taken from close proximity” but I can link you to the article about the Air Force’s research into this very same tech that can ID you miles away.

Consider Anonymous and/or LulSec and/or simliar? What happens when my Iris scan and Mr Serial killers get hacked and switched? Computers never lie? Right??

Yes, I am paranoid because I am scared of the direction we are taking in the name of “security.” If anyone sounds like a douche, you need only look in the mirror.

-Logic and sanity has left the building folks gnite.

Logic and sanity has left the building folks gnite.

@Convictus,

"You are way off base on this one. What are you scared about? Are you a criminal hiding from the law?"

Here's the thing... in the U.S. you are innocent until proven guilty. That means everyone who is walking around and not in jail is NOT a criminal.

When I am hassled on the street by the cops I'm treated as if I am a criminal--which I do not deserve.

Here' the other thing. I work for a software company that creates 911 software. I have access to the FBI NCIC databases as well as multiple state-level and county-level criminal databases. If I really were so inclined, I could create a criminal record for someone I didn't like and cover my tracks enough so that they probably couldn't figure out who'd done it.

I'm just a lowly software engineer... Imagine what I could do if I were a higher-up in the gov't.

The easier it is to track "criminals" the easier it is to track innocent people that get in one's way.

This is a bad idea. Why? Because the Police/Law enforcement are not the only folks with databases. Has anyone ever seen those websites like "WhoGotBusted.com" or "Mugshots.com" or your regional newspaper? When you get arrested, your picture and information is transmitted all over the web. It won't matter what happens in court down the road or what your lawyer will be able to do for you to prove your innocence. Who cares what law enforcement does when the information crawler that is part of these devices goes and looks on the "web". All those other databases, and the Google cache will have wrong information that law enforcement will then see and not know where the data came from.

So if you were arrested for a serious crime, then used the proper channels to get it reduced or dropped via the legal system, nothing is out there to make sure the other databases are up to date and you'll be "guilty" no matter what.

Until we come up with laws that protect our electronic identity, then these sort of devices should be banned.

@thisnametaken

Your credibility went out the door when you equated a police cellphone photo to getting hit with a projectile.

It actually makes my stomach sick to see Americans on the internet who hold no value for the efforts of our soldiers in Iraq or Afghanistan who believe they are fighting for freedom, for honor, and above all for America.

It's not about whether you think the only people who can and will be affected by technology like this are criminals. It's about your constitutional rights to independence, privacy, and freedom of self being threatened. If we are truly "free" Americans, don't we deserve the right to choose whether we want to be monitored or not? Or does no one really care about freedom anymore? I suppose people would rather be "safe" than "free." But safe from who exactly? When did America become so dangerous it enabled, no that it in fact necessitated, the government to strip it's citizens of their freedom? Benjamin Franklin, a founding father of this country in case you didn't know, famously stated "Those who would sacrifice LIBERTY for SECURITY deserve neither."

Maybe the people who want this technology to be used on American soil believe the government is unquestionably moral, righteous, and good. Richard Nixon was president. Was he the paragon of goodness? Who should be held responsible for the "totally not Nazi concentration camps" filled with Japanese-Americans during World War II? It certainly wasn't the action of free citizens or private companies... What about the Cold War era McCarthy hearings where innocent people who were simply, and importantly FALSELY, accused of being communists were imprisoned, interrogated, tortured, and otherwise stripped of all American rights? The United States government has demonstrated time and time again that it neither protects nor values the freedom of innocent American citizens. Instead, it is the American citizens who are left to hold onto their freedom.

Just imagine how you would feel today if suddenly you were accused of being a terrorist. Imagine being imprisoned for nothing more than an accusation. Imagine being interrogated and called a liar by your own government. Imagine having your family and friends abandoning you because someone mistook you for a terrorist. Your home, your job, your property- your life basically gone. Then ask yourself, while you're imagining all of this, why it happened. It's better to assume everyone is a terrorist and have them actually be innocent than the other way around. Right?

@johnt007871

He pissed me off. It wasn't meant to be a direct comparison although one could argue nothing military should be pointed at its citizens - an extreme example sure - my bad :D

You know what I like?

I like that we're now discussing all of these things openly, yes like the populace was doing pre-revolutionary times. An interested and informed populace debating these issues might (small percentage but I'll take it) get us out of this alive.

We won't all agree all the time, but that's the good part of debate. To work toward the best ideas using all of our mutual and varied experiences to come to the best choice. Its not like political correctness who noone knows who sets the rules or even what the rules are, you just scream at people their ignorant and shut up if it sounds like they may have transgressed, until your screamed at because the rules changed out from under you.

Yup I like this much better.

Our rights may very well be being threatened. There are many fractions of this new system which are flawed and some that really bug me, but seeing as how its 2 in the morning, I'll only mention the three that stand out to me the most.

First, Like Anonymity mentioned and backed up with evidence, the Government is not wholly good or trustworthy, and as B.V. informed us, Government officials with higher powers have extreme access to Federal Databases and Files. Therefore, with the wrong people in power, innocent people could be wrongly accused based on false information implanted into Federal Files by those whom it may benefit. We simply don't have the security measures necessary to prevent such an occurrence from taking place.

Secondly, this is only the beginning of such a "security" system. "ThisNameisTaken" sums it up pretty well. Eventually it will get to where we don't go ANYWHERE without the Government knowing exactly where we are. And when that time comes, IF it comes, whose to say that Government databases are totally secure? There are brilliant computer hackers out there in today's society who know just about every trick in the book. What's to stop them from getting into the system? Just the other day, someone hacked PlayStation, gaining access to over 70 million of the users information, including credit cards, birth dates, addresses, e-mails, etc. And I would be willing to bet money that PlayStation isn't the easiest company to hack. So what would happen if someone stole information about your whereabouts and knew where you were 24/7? Talk about a security issue.

Finally, the thing that really grinds my gears. The article doesn't say that the device 'may' roll out in the fall. It IS rolling out in the fall. Perhaps there will be enough outcry about MORIS to prevent its coming for a spell, but i seriously doubt it. And even if it doesn't come into use this fall, next year you get pulled over for speeding and what do you know? You'll see it anyways.

I don't mean to sound over-paranoid and I'm not against the Government. I understand why they want such a system in use and honestly believe that most of the politicians who want this are supporting it for good reasons. America has protected our Freedoms and Liberties for nearly 250 years. But it's like Anonymity said. In the end it's up to us, as united American citizens, to hold onto our Freedoms and Liberties...

LOL hey wer are headed toward the technological singularity and guess what because of nano technology there will be no such thing as privacy. Privacy will be impossible to obtain because of nanotech. Thats the future so get used to it.

God knows and sees all. The innocent and rightness have nothing to fear, but the devils will fade in the shadows so not to be illuminated and his presence be known.

@laurenoe
We already have to rely on police databases to keep accurate records. This tech doesn't make it any easier to hack. I'm sure a facebook photo will not be admissable. They will be searching state I'd picture records.

"don't take our freedom d"on't take our freedom"
Let's not make americans look worse.
What freedom? We have more laws than any other country.
We are as free as a herd of sheep.
We are free to have all of or actions restricted to be "safe". Real americans don't complain about freedom. Because we know, no matter how restricted it is. It's probably better than where we came from.. Most if us have done nothing to earn American freedom. The only people that bitch about their freedom , were born seem to have a warped understanding of what freedom even is. It's not walking around without having your precious picture taken.. It's not getting on a billion dollar airplane without being searched. We have the freedom to annoy our gov't to change our bs laws.so hop off the message boards and go enjoy your freedom. But it looks like practicing your freedom of expression online is really what's more important.
Half our tech comes from military and space research. How are a liking this internet? I bet you weren't complaining when you bought that digitaL cam. No you take pics of your kids with it. And no it doesn't capture their souls how about margarine? Jet engine? Rubber? Penicillin? Anesthesia? Or what would you do without your trusty exploding cigar? (ok so they aren't all good) but atleast they are testing it somewhere else first. be grateful.

Your not gonna hear too many immigrants .complaining
PRIVACY is in your home . There is no privacy in the PUBLIC.
You are already on camera z30 times a day. As long as it stays with the police it's fine. It will be time to worry when you can make money off of it and they link it to financial records and credit cards.

@Convictus "What are you scared about? Are you a criminal hiding from the law?"

Being a criminal is subjective. There are millions of laws on the books that are selectively enforced. For instance, having oral copulation with your own wife is technically illegal in many states. How many otherwise "law abiding citizens" do you think have broken that law. Look at "dumblaws com". I suspect everyone is technically a "criminal" when held against all laws.

"It’s generally permissible to take a photo of anyone in a public space, but when a law enforcement agent does so--and especially when he or she then cross references it against a criminal database--that could constitute a search, and therefore should require a warrant."

I'm not sure how a law enforcement officer taking a picture (for someone who they have stopped because that is what the technology requires) and then running it through a police database is any different than pulling a car over and running the driver's license # or license plate. I am not so sure this is a search requiring a search warrant.

@Gatorade Man,

"I am not so sure this is a search requiring a search warrant."

The laws are different in different states. Some state criminal database searches have different depth levels depending on whether or not the officer has probable cause to retrieve the more sensitive information.

@jmadrigal12,

"As long as it stays with the police it's fine."

You remember that they are using an iPhone, right?

Do you remember a few months ago when someone discovered that iPhone were actually storing GPS coordinates of everywhere they had been since the user turned it on?

In effect, creating a map of the iPhone owners whereabouts...

Apple claims they did not try to look at this data or use it for anything... they just captured and stored it.

Do you really trust your sensitive criminal information data to be flowing through Apple's iPhones? And AT&T's or Verizon's networks?

That criminal information is public record. Just check out your local county clerk website. Just put in a name and get their traffic and criminal record free. As long as it can't be edited from the iPhone, there's nothing to worry about.

As far as the iPhone tracking........ That's what gps does..... It tracks your position.... Just don't buy one.

@jmadrigal12,

1) There are many databases of criminal information--trust me, you cannot access what the cops can from your county clerk website.

2) A GPS doesn't save every single coordinate I've ever been to since I've owned the device in it's memory. They make specialty hiking GPS devices that do that and beam up your coordinates to a web server so if you get lost your friends can track you down... but they explicitly state they log everywhere you go and are meant for use in the woods... not for reporting to big brother your whereabouts at all times.

When someone buys an iPhone, Apple doesn't say "So yeah, you get these apps, you can kinda make phone calls, most importantly it's really COOL, and we'll be tracking your movements as if you were a tagged caribou..."

Their tracking is secretive and nobody would have known they were signing up for that when they bought an iPhone if it weren't for some guy hacking around on his (which, while doing, I'm sure he violated the Apple EULA).

This kind of thing is exactly why I have been avoiding the US the last 5 years. I prefer to pay hundreds of dollars more for a ticket just to do that. Germany's Gestapo, during WWII in The Netherlands, was kinder than the US's HS agencies nowadays. And the US citizens just stand by while their rights are being taken away, one by one, by the Scaremongers.

If you have the driver's license, don't you already have the identity of the person? This sounds like an overpriced gimmick that does little more than exploit funding that might be better spent on things like training.

Yea, in a country where your 8 year-old kid can be charged with a crime for setting up a lemonade stand in his own yard, you've got nothing to fear from the government. Nothing to see here...move along citizens.

i'm pretty adamant about our freedoms as americans and wish they weren't being taken away so easily. we really are just giving up our freedoms in the name of "security". i wont go into this any more, you guys did a pretty good job already.