Chapter 3 - Opening Case - Facial Recognition in India Raises Concerns Flashcards
What happened in the city of Hyderabad India in 2007 and 2013? How many people died and were injured.
Experienced terror attacks when it was apart of the state of Andhra Pradesh. The 2007 bomb blast killed at least 42 people and the 2013 blast killed 18 people and injured 119 more. Pervasive police surveillance began after the blasts when authorities passed the public safety act requiring CCTV cameras where more than 100 people gather, and at the request of officers the companies must surrender the footage.
What action did India take in 2014? What was the number of CCTV cameras installed by 2022?
India decided to create a new state Telangana which would be separate from Andhra Pradesh with Hyderabad as its capital. There were 830,000 CCTV cameras, which accounts for 60% of all cameras in the country.
What is facial recognition software?
Employs machine learning algorithms to record specific, distinctive details of a persons face. Details such as the distance between the eyes or the shape of the chin are converted into mathematical software and compared to dat on other faces in a facial recognition software. These are monitored in real time at a command control centre.
What are the various reasons that facial recognition is implemented?
- Cordon and search operations
- Profiling random people for narcotics
- Unlawful phone searching activities.
What is a cordon and search operation? What do privacy advocates claim about the legality of these actions>
A neighbourhood is sealed off. Then police conduct door to door searches and take fingerprints scans and photographs of the residents. Argue that they primarily target muslim individual and places where lower socioeconomic marginalized people live.
What is TSCOP?
Sn app on the smartphones of the police which contains facial recognition technology linked to national law enforcement databases and systems. Checks can be run in real time.
What do police officers do once they randomly stop and search commuters?
Take photos and collect biometric data.
What is Samagram?
Smart governance program. Provides the state government with a 360 degree digital profile of every residents life, including their name, address, phone number, marital status, children, birth and death details, and employment status.
What private information is held by samagram?
Police records, utility service data, tax payments, and voter identification.
What claim does the Telangana authorities make regarding the Samagram?What can Samagram be applied too?
Through the name alone they can see an individuals digital footprint within seconds. Family tree forensics.
What is family tree forensics?
The use of DNA and family tree data to learn the identity of criminals.
What name has been applied to Hyderabad? Why are privacy advocates protesting against Hyderabad?
Total surveillance city.
Argues that taking photographs of random civilians violates their right to privacy.
There are also no safeguards to the citizens. They do not know how the information is being used, how long they are stored, or where they are stored and by whom.
No official redress mechanisms. There is no legal framework governing privacy related issues, even though Indias Supreme Court has recognized privacy as a fundamental right.
What has Hyderabad Police Departments responses ben to the accusations?
They have been able to lower the crime and trace missing children. They can apprehend 99% of suspects within 24 hours.
What is the Identification of Prisoners Act?
It is an act that dates back to 1920 which state that police are not allowed to photograph people who have not been arrested or convicted, making it against the law for the use and implementation into a criminal database. These photos also cannot be shared with other law enforcement agencies. However this practice still continues as no one is enforcing the law.
