Summary:

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has issued a report finding that federal agents are using face recognition software without training, policies, or oversight. The GAO reviewed seven agencies within the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Justice, and found that none of the seven agencies fully complied with their own policies on handling personally identifiable information (PII), like facial images.

The GAO also found that thousands of face recognition searches have been conducted by federal agents without training or policies. In the period GAO studied, at least 63,000 searches had happened, but this number is a known undercount. A complete count of face recognition use is not possible, because some systems used by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) don’t track these numbers.

The GAO report is a reminder of the dangers of face recognition technology, particularly when used by law enforcement and government. Face recognition technology can be used to facilitate covert mass surveillance, make judgments about how we feel and behave, and track people automatically as they go about their day.

The GAO recommends that the federal government immediately put guardrails around who can use face recognition technology for what and cease its use of this technology altogether.