ASSOCIATED PRESS/Eric RisbergTopline: As facial recognition technology raises concerns about how it could lead to privacy and civil rights violations—especially for people of color—San Francisco became the first city to ban its use. Critics of facial recognition say the technology isn’t reliable enough to be in the hands of law enforcement. But even if facial recognition were 100% accurate, civil rights groups worry it can easily be abused by police departments to target protesters or certain communities, such as Muslims who attend mosques. A San Francisco Police Department spokesperson said it currently doesn’t use facial recognition, saying it looks forward to “addressing privacy concerns of technology while balancing public safety concerns.”While San Francisco is the first city to enact such a ban, proposals are being considered in Oakland, California and Somerville, MassachusettsBig asterisk: The ban doesn’t apply to the San Francisco International Airport and the Port of San Francisco, because they are under the jurisdiction of the federal government. Media Lab found that facial recognition programs have a higher error rate for women of color.

Source: Forbes May 14, 2019 20:10 UTC