skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, March 29, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The latest on the Key Bridge collapse, New York puts forth legislation to get clean energy projects on the grid and Wisconsin and other states join a federal summer food program to help feed kids across the country.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Republicans float conspiracy theories on the collapse of Baltimore's Key Bridge, South Carolina's congressional elections will use a map ruled unconstitutional, and the Senate schedules an impeachment trial for Homeland Secretary Mayorkas.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Portland Considers Strongest Facial-Recognition Ban in U.S.

play audio
Play

Friday, August 14, 2020   

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Portland is poised to pass the strongest ban on facial-recognition technology in the country next month.

Nearly a year in the making, the Portland City Council is considering two ordinances.

The first would ban government use of facial recognition technology - already passed in cities like San Francisco and Boston. The second would ban its use by businesses in public places, making Portland the first city to do so.

Native Portlander and member of the digital-rights group Fight for the Future, Lia Holland, said there's evidence some Portland businesses are using this technology.

"Because facial recognition is currently totally unregulated in Portland, no one actually has to report whether they're using the technology to anyone, whatsoever," said Holland. "So, we don't actually know how many companies have been using this technology on people."

In the wake of George Floyd's death, Amazon, IBM and Microsoft announced they would suspend the sale of facial-recognition technology to police departments.

City officials have said the Portland Police Bureau doesn't use it, but some law enforcement agencies defend facial recognition as a useful tool for identifying people wanted by authorities.

The technology has come under scrutiny for racial bias. According to a National Institute of Standards and Technology report from December, facial recognition was up to 100 times more likely to misidentify people of color.

Holland said this is happening on the ground in Detroit.

"The Detroit Police Department uses facial recognition to try and identify people who have committed crimes and has, multiple times, arrested black men who look nothing like the people in the videos," said Holland, "based on what the computer says and the own, inherent racism of that police department."

Supporters say facial recognition technology will become more accurate with more "training."

Democrats in Congress are investigating whether it has been used by federal agencies to track protesters.

Holland noted the dangers extend beyond demonstrations. Fight for the Future has raised concerns about the security of the databases where this information is stored.

"It exposes our data to potential hackers, stalkers and other bad actors," said Holland. "Think about your credit card number. If that gets hacked, you can just change it. But you can't change your face or the face of your child."

The Portland City Council is scheduled to vote on these ordinances Sept. 9.




get more stories like this via email

more stories
The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments this week about the popular abortion pill Mifepristone and will weigh in on whether the U.S. Food and Drug Administration was correct in how it can be dosed and prescribed. (Ascannio/Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Missouri residents are worried about future access to birth control. The latest survey from The Right Time, an initiative based in Missouri…


Social Issues

play sound

Wisconsin children from low-income families are now on track to get nutritious foods over the summer. Federal officials have approved the Badger …

Social Issues

play sound

Almost 2,900 people are unsheltered on any given night in the Beehive State. Gov. Spencer Cox is celebrating signing nine bills he says are geared …


The U.S. teaching workforce remains primarily white while the percentage of Black teachers has declined. However, the percentage of Asian and Latinx teachers is rising.(WavebreakMediaMicro/Adobestock)

Social Issues

play sound

Education advocates are calling on lawmakers to increase funding for programs to combat the teacher shortage. Around 37% of schools nationwide …

Environment

play sound

New York's Legislature is considering a bill to get clean-energy projects connected to the grid faster. It's called the RAPID Act, for "Renewable …

Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021