Apple’s iPhoneX brings face recognition to masses, concerns over technology
Last year, a Russian photographer figured out how to match the faces of porn stars with their social media profiles to “doxx” them, or reveal their true identities. This type of use “can create huge problems,” said Garvie. “We have to consider the worst possible uses of the technology.” Apple’s system uses 30,000 infrared dots to create a digital image which is stored in a “secure enclave,” according to a white paper issued by the company on its security. It said the chances of a “random” person being able to unlock the device are one in a million, compared with one in 50,000 for its TouchID. Apple’s FaceID is likely to touch off fresh legal battles about whether police can require someone to unlock a device. FaceID “brings the company deeper into a legal debate” that stemmed from the introduction of fingerprint identification on smartphones, according to ACLU staff attorney Brett Max Kaufman.
Kaufman says in a blog post that courts will be grappling with the constitutional guarantees against unreasonable searches and self-incrimination if a suspect is forced to unlock a device. US courts have generally ruled that it would violate a user’s rights to give up a passcode because it is “testimonial” — but that situation becomes murkier when biometrics are applied. Apple appears to have anticipated this situation by allowing a user to press two buttons for two seconds to require a passcode, but Garvie said court battles over compelling the use of FaceID are likely. Regardless of these concerns, Apple’s introduction is likely to bring about widespread use of facial recognition technology.
“What Apple is doing here will popularize and get people more comfortable with the technology,” said Patrick Moorhead, principal analyst at Moor Insights & Strategy, who follows the sector. “If I look at Apple’s track record of making things easy for consumers, I’m optimistic users are going to like this.” Garvie added it is important to have conversations about facial recognition because there is little regulation governing the use of the technology. “The technology may well be inevitable,” she said. “It is going to become part of everyone’s lives if it isn’t already.”