Rank One Computing believes in a just, non-violent world of equality and fairness. We prize democratic values, civil liberties and open and informed debate. When used to further these values, automated face recognition can continue to make the world a safer, better place for everyone. And, in the absence of regulatory guidance, we wish to advance limitations that we believe are appropriate in how face recognition should be utilized.
The following set of ethics serve as a guideline for how we will develop face recognition systems and how we will expect our integration partners and end-users to develop and utilize face recognition systems based on our algorithms.
First Principle
Facial recognition should be used to make the world safer, more secure and more convenient while minimizing harm through proper workflows that identify and mitigate sources of error.
Commercial Use
- Facial recognition should not be used to track private details about a person without opt-in consent, except when used for security and safety purposes.
Law Enforcement Use
- Facial recognition should not be used for real-time mass surveillance of lawful activity. Any targeted surveillance of an individual should require a court-ordered warrant.
- Facial recognition should not support probable cause for arrest, search or seizure.
- Facial recognition should utilize best practices and workflows established by the Facial Identification Scientific Working Group (FISWG) and the Organization of Scientific Area Committees for Forensic Science (OSAC) Facial Identification Subcommittee, which require a trained human facial examiner to make final determinations based on morphological matching guidelines.
- Facial recognition should be used to solve violent crimes and felonies, but not victimless misdemeanors.
- Any use of facial recognition should be discoverable in criminal proceedings.
- Facial recognition use must be in compliance with police policies and procedures, all statutes and regulations and the Constitutional limits that protect civil liberties.
Read more about face recognition policy considerations:
- How Forensic Face Recognition Works
- When Misinformation Endangers Lives
- Race and Face Recognition Accuracy: Common Misconceptions