Controversy Over Facial Recognition in Schools

Feb 10, 2020, 1:11 PM

(from the New York Times) New York public schools in the district of Lockport have begun using facial recognition technology in its schools, raising concerns about privacy and fairness. Proponents call it a crucial crime-fighting tool, to help prevent mass shootings and stop sexual predators. But opponents have concerns about privacy, accuracy and racial bias that are heightened when it comes to children. The school initially planned to launch the technology about a year ago but stalled due to public concerns.

In December, the federal government released a study, one of the largest of its kind, that found that most commercial facial recognition systems exhibited bias, falsely identifying African-American and Asian faces 10 to 100 times more than Caucasian faces. Another federal study found a higher rate of mistaken matches among children.