WEST CAROLINA: Amazon said on Tuesday (Wednesday in Manila) it is extending its ban on the use of its facial recognition tools for law enforcement, amid persistent concerns of bias in the technology. Last year’s move came amid widespread protests over police brutality and concerns that facial recognition technology is flawed, especially in analyzing features of African-Americans. Activists also say the technology tools may use algorithms, which discriminate, intentionally or not, against Black people. Activists have targeted Amazon Web Services cloud computing unit’s “Rekognition” facial recognition technology and Ring surveillance cameras used for home security. Amazon last year called for governments to put in place “stronger regulations to govern the ethical use of facial recognition technology.” Its ban was followed by Microsoft and IBM, which made similar announcements.

Source: Manila Times May 18, 2021 21:45 UTC