14 DAY TRIAL // The use of facial recognition in public areas in EU state members might be banned until 2025, according to a recent proposal of European regulators.
The European Commission believes that before rolling out facial recognition technology in public areas, the technology needs to be better regulated in a way that privacy violations can be prevented.
One of the Commission’s proposals is for member states to create a watchdog that would make sure the new rules are correctly applied, it is mentioned in an 18-page draft that is projected to be publicly announced next month.
“The use of facial recognition technology by private or public actors in public spaces would be prohibited for a definite period (eg three to five years) during which a sound methodology for assessing the impacts of this technology and possible risk management measures could be identified and developed,” the document obtained by Euractiv reads.
Facial recognition in public spaces
China was the first large country that adopted facial recognition in public spaces. More recently, the Beijing government decided to install facial recognition systems in pharmacies, requiring those buying certain drugs to scan their faces for verification.
Several European states have already expressed their intention to adopt facial recognition in public spaces. Germany has recently conducted a facial recognition pilot in Berlin that included the use of such scanning systems in railway stations and airports. The test, which is considered successful by the local government, has already been completed, so broad installation of facial recognition systems is under consideration.
Facial recognition adoption is skyrocketing in the tech industry, with such systems currently being used on a wide variety of devices, including smartphones and computers.
More companies building such devices are expected to mass-adopt similar tech for their 2020 models as a result of parts manufacturing getting cheaper and more suppliers investing in increased production capacity.