Tech making us safer?

[bignflnut]

Clearview AI, the facial recognition company that claims to have amassed a database of more than 3 billion photos scraped from Facebook, YouTube, and millions of other websites, is scrambling to deal with calls for bans from advocacy groups and legal threats. These troubles come after news reports exposed its questionable data practices and misleading statements about working with law enforcement.

Following stories published in the New York Times and BuzzFeed News, the Manhattan-based startup received cease-and-desist letters from Twitter and the New Jersey attorney general. It was also sued in Illinois in a case seeking class-action status.
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Despite its legal woes, Clearview continues to contradict itself, according to documents obtained by BuzzFeed News that are inconsistent with what the company has told the public. In one example, the company, whose code of conduct states that law enforcement should only use its software for criminal investigations, encouraged officers to use it on their friends and family members.

A facial-recognition company that contracts with powerful law-enforcement agencies just reported that an intruder stole its entire client list, according to a notification the company sent to its customers.

In the notification, which The Daily Beast reviewed, the startup Clearview AI disclosed to its customers that an intruder “gained unauthorized access” to its list of customers, to the number of user accounts those customers had set up, and to the number of searches its customers have conducted. The notification said the company’s servers were not breached and that there was “no compromise of Clearview’s systems or network.” The company also said it fixed the vulnerability and that the intruder did not obtain any law-enforcement agencies’ search histories.

Tor Ekeland, an attorney for the company, said Clearview prioritizes security.

“Security is Clearview’s top priority,” he said in a statement provided to The Daily Beast. “Unfortunately, data breaches are part of life in the 21st century. Our servers were never accessed. We patched the flaw, and continue to work to strengthen our security.”

Yesssss, if you build the database, someone will access it...

[Bruenor]

Nice.. the NAS I use at home supports facial recognition in it's NVR Software.. at least per the email they sent me recently.
Tempted to get a camera or two and try it out...

[ArmedAviator]

I'm a tech guy. I always looked forward to more interconnected tech when I was younger. Now I find myself trying to disconnect the rest of the world out of my personal life. Google, Apple, and Microsoft are far too pervasive. Companies and agencies recording your image, texts, emails, and voice without your consent.


This nonsense right here is why I leave very little digital signature on the technosphere. Keep my name private, no non-anonymous social media (Facebook, Instagram, etc., only forums with various usernames - and not the same usernames on more than a few sites). Never upload anything identifiable (email address, pictures [even if pictures of unidentifyable content....EXIF data gives TONS of info!], or names). Encrypt EVERYTHING - VPNs, encrypted email (NEVER GMAIL!), secure SMS when able (Signal), and hard drives.

Everything is being recorded, even if not for nefarious reasons, someone will crack the system and that may be worse.

Also, use strong passwords, never ever write them down in clear text, and if you use ones you don't memorize, use a proper password manager. I use KeePass (free and open source) which is nice to keep them all encrypted and auto-fills on my cell phone. I keep the KeePass file synced on all my devices. Never use fingerprint or facial recognition as ways to access devices. You can change a password, you can never change your face or fingerprint. Additionally, biometric security is not protected by the 5th Amendment, whereas a password or pin is protected.

And don't use the same email/username/password combos between sites!!! https://haveibeenpwned.com/Passwords" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;