What are the dangers of facial recognition technology?
Civil liberties groups say privacy should not be traded for protection, but governments argue it ensures safety.
Last week, San Francisco, California became the first major city in the United States to ban the use of facial recognition technology by police and government agencies . But authorities – and even some civil society groups – contend that the technology could help fight crime and should not be banned completely. However, civil liberties organisations say such systems, if adopted widely, would compromise privacy and disproportionately target marginalised communities.
Such criticism has not prevented other governments in the world from promoting facial recognition networks in the name of security. Police departments across the UK have conducted st...