Facial recognition opponents wear clothes, masks and make-up designed to confuse the software
- One attempt to reclaim privacy is Computer Vision Dazzle, which uses crazy make-up and hair to create an ‘anti-face’ that confuses facial recognition algorithms
- Polish designer Ewa Nowak has created a metal, jewellery-like mask that can deflect recognition software in security cameras
In light of the global pandemic governments are deploying monitoring systems, such as facial recognition technology, to enforce quarantines and social distancing.
Plenty of people are looking to thwart this increase in surveillance in everyday life using everything from make-up to full-face masks. They are concerned about how the technology can affect civil rights, autonomy and freedom in public spaces.
Mark Andrejevic, an expert in surveillance and data mining at Monash University in Australia, says that isn’t always easy.
“People are developing systems and technologies for thwarting facial recognition, and even as they do it, folks that are developing the technology are looking for ways to make it more effective and more accurate. It’s very hard to do things at the individual level – I think we need to something at the public, regulatory level.
“The technology has made how things work different, and we need to develop rules for how this technology can be used that are enforced, but it’s not going to be easy.”