EPIC Urges Congress to Suspend Face Surveillance

February 6, 2020

In advance of a hearing on the Department of Homeland Security's use of facial recognition technology. EPIC urged Congress to suspend the use of facial recognition for mass surveillance. EPIC explained that an individual's ability to control disclosure of identity "is an essential aspect of personal security and privacy." EPIC provided to the House Committee the Public Voice Declaration, supported by more than 100 organizations and leading experts from around the world, calling for a moratorium on face surveillance. The Declaration calls on countries to (1) suspend deployment of facial recognition; (2) review systems to determine whether personal data was obtained lawfully; (3) undertake research to assess bias and risk; and (4) establish legal rules, technical standards, and ethical guidelines before further deployment occurs. EPIC recently launched a campaign and resource page to ban face surveillance globally.

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