Facial Recognition Company Hacked
Clearview AI, that works with the US law enforcement community with its facial recognition software, has had a hacker exploit a security flaw and steal its entire client list. The company , whose database has collected over 3 billion photos has suffered a data breach.
The data stolen in the hack included the firm’s entire customer list, which will include multiple law enforcement agencies, along with information such as the number of searches they had made and how many accounts they’d set up. Clearview AI say the huge database of images was not part of the breach.
The exact nature and source of the breach remains unknown at this time. The company says it’s patched the vulnerability and insists its servers were not accessed. Based on the sensitive nature of its work, there’s plenty of reason for concern. Clearview says it works with law enforcement agencies and the company claims that not only does its clientele include hundreds of police stations, it also services the FBI and DHS. A leaked list of Clearview AI’s clients shows that the controversial company’s facial recognition software has spread way beyond law enforcement, into household names.
Clearview claims to have scraped more than three billion images from websites and social media platforms into a database that police can use to match with photos of suspects.
They include retailers (Walmart, Kohl’s, BestBuy and Macy’s); banks (Wells Fargo and Bank of America), sports leagues (the NBA); entertainment venues (Madison Square Garden), mobile carriers (AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile); casinos (Las Vegas Sands and Pechanga Resort Casino); gyms (Equinox); ticketing platforms (Eventbrite); and cryptocurrency exchanges (Coinbase).
Clearview’s focus on law enforcement would suggest that other companies would find similar security uses, such as identifying shoplifters in stores and potential trouble-makers at basketball games. But this could quickly lead to the unconsented profiling of innocent consumers and passersby.
Clearview’s system, the company says, is “an after-the-fact research tool. Clearview is not a surveillance system and is not built like one. For example, analysts upload images from crime scenes and compare them to publicly available images.”
In doing so, it says, it has the power to help its clients, which include police departments, ICE, Macy’s, Walmart, and the FBI, says a recent Buzzfeed report to stop criminals: “Clearview helps to identify child molesters, murderers, suspected terrorists, and other dangerous people quickly, accurately, and reliably to keep our families and communities safe.”
Clearview AI hit the news recently when the New York Times detailed how the company’s facial recognition program had scraped sources including Facebook and Twitter to build its massive database.
If you live in California, under the rules of the newly enacted California Consumer Privacy Act, you can see what Clearview has gathered on you, and request that they stop it.
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