Re:Why facial recognition has led to false arrests
by GuB-42 on Monday August 24, 2020 @02:54PM
(#24264060)
The real question is: overall did face recognition lead to a higher proportion of false arrests, and even more importantly false convictions.
Clearly, facial recognition can make mistakes that lead to false arrests. Of course, it is important to minimize that number, that alone doesn't tell us if facial recognition is justified.
The thing is:
- An arrest is not a conviction, it is important to know (if possible) how much of these facial recognition false arrests led to false convictions. I suspect not a lot, because judges and attorneys are still human.
- How much false arrests did facial recognition prevent? It can happen if the system correctly identifies the culprit before an innocent is arrested. It can also be used to cross-check false/unreliable testimony.
Note: I am not talking about the privacy implication of facial recognition, only its effect on criminal investigations.
Clearly, facial recognition can make mistakes that lead to false arrests. Of course, it is important to minimize that number, that alone doesn't tell us if facial recognition is justified.
The thing is:
- An arrest is not a conviction, it is important to know (if possible) how much of these facial recognition false arrests led to false convictions. I suspect not a lot, because judges and attorneys are still human.
- How much false arrests did facial recognition prevent? It can happen if the system correctly identifies the culprit before an innocent is arrested. It can also be used to cross-check false/unreliable testimony.
Note: I am not talking about the privacy implication of facial recognition, only its effect on criminal investigations.