No Easy Answers

Given the increasing ubiquity of facial and voice recognition, serious impacts on society are inevitable.

“I don’t think society is ready for the new potential of state power to track people,” says Martin Chorzempa, a research fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington, D.C. He cites the Chinese government’s use of facial recognition for law enforcement purposes to track down everyone from wanted criminals to jaywalkers.

“It will be increasingly difficult for
individuals to avoid broadcasting to
the world where they are,” Chorzem-
pa says. “For example, someone who
passes by Times Square on their way
to work will likely show up in tourist
photos that are posted on social me-
dia, and facial recognition could easily
piece together their route to work and
their schedule using the photos and
the times or dates they were taken.”
In an era where devices are always
watching and listening, personal priva-
cy is more likely than ever to be assault-
ed by official institutions, even well-
meaning democratic governments.

“We risk chilling free speech and
assembly—rights guaranteed to us
under the First Amendment,” says
Garvie. “Law enforcement agencies
themselves recognized this risk in a
2011 Privacy Impact Assessment, stat-
ing: ‘The potential harm of surveil-
lance comes from its use as a tool of
social control. The mere possibility of
surveillance has the potential to make
people feel extremely uncomfortable,
cause people to alter their behavior,
and lead to self-censorship and inhi-
bition.’”
Donahoe is equally skeptical that
governments will make the right call
when it comes to balancing security
and liberty. “The ease of use of facial
recognition technology for security
purposes will make it less likely that
governments will protect citizen liber-
ty to the extent required by democratic
values,” she says.

“A core challenge for democratic governments will be continued adherence to the rule of law, where restrictions on individual liberty that flow from use of this technology must be justified by necessity, legitimate purpose, and use of the least restrictive means available.”

 

Further Reading

Simonite, T.

Few Rules Govern Police Use of Facial Recognition, WIRED, May 22, 2018, https://www.wired.com/story/few-rules-govern-police-use-of-facial-recognition-technology/

Lynch, J.

Face Off: Law Enforcement Use of Facial Recognition Technology, EFF, February 12, 2018, https://www.eff.org/wp/law-enforcement-use-face-recognition

Lapowsky, I.

Schools Can Now Get Facial Recognition Tech for Free. Should They?

WIRED, July 17, 2018, https://www.wired.com/story/realnetworks-facial-recognition-technology-schools/

Levy, N.

Amazon Hands Over Alexa Data in Arkansas Hot Tub Murder Case, But 1st Amendment Questions Remain,

Geek Wire, March 7, 2017, https://www.geekwire.com/2017/amazon- hands-over-alexa-data-in-arkansas-hot- tub-murder-case-but-questions-of-1st- amendment-rights-remain/

Olson, C.

Just Say It: The Future of Search Is Voice and Personal Digital Assistants,

Campaign, April 25, 2016, https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/ just-say-it-future-search-voice-personal- digital-assistants/1392459

Logan Kugler is a freelance technology writer based in Tampa, FL, USA. He has written for over 60 major publications.

© 2019 ACM 0001-0782/19/2 $15.00

hears your voice, processes the language of your speech, then responds to the content of your queries.

We see the value of these systems every day. Voice assistants increasingly help us search online and find relevant content to serve consumer needs. In fact, about 50% of all online searches will be voice searches by 2020, according to media measurement and analytics firm Comscore.

“Voice recognition technology will expand accessibility to many devices and applications, especially for people who are visually impaired,” says Donahoe. “I can imagine voice recognition technologies bringing many beneficial applications and efficiencies to society, and expanding accessibility.” These could include making searching for information, and purchasing online, easier for consumers.

However, she notes, there are downsides.

While voice recognition may empower individuals, the technology also may impact privacy. Voice recognition devices are listening constantly, according to The Washington Post. These devices are listening for the “wake up” words that activate them, such as “Hey, Google” or “Alexa,” that users must speak to alert the devices that a request is about to be made. There have been allegations that these devices are always listening, and this information is then being logged in ways that violate user privacy.

Amazon has denied its voice-
controlled Echo is always capturing
what is said in its presence, saying,
“that allegation—that the Echo is
possibly recording at all times with-
out the ‘wake word’ being issued—is
incorrect,” according to an Amazon
spokesperson. “The device is con-
stantly listening but not recording,
and nothing is streamed to or stored
in the cloud without the wake word
being detected.”
This has not stopped law enforce-
ment from lobbying Amazon for user
data when investigating potential
crimes, in an effort to pull voice logs
from the company’s servers. Amazon
dropped a motion to protect audio re-
cordings from one of its Echo devices
that belonged to a murder suspect. The
company had originally argued the data
was protected by the First Amendment.

Amazon says
the Echo is
“constantly
listening but
not recording,
and nothing is
streamed to
or stored in
the cloud without
the wake word
being detected.”