[LINK] Ohio Forgot To Tell Residents That Cops Have Been Using Facial Recognition On License Photos

[Kim Holburn]

http://consumerist.com/2013/08/27/ohio-forgot-to-tell-residents-that-cops-have-been-using-facial-recognition-on-license-photos/

> Ohio Forgot To Tell Residents That Cops Have Been Using Facial Recognition On License Photos
> 
> By Mary Beth Quirk August 27, 2013
> 
> Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine is facing some criticism after a news investigation revealed that his office had launched a facial recognition system, which allows police to scan pictures of suspects and match them to drivers license photos in the law enforcement’s database. Despite the fact that the system hadn’t been updated to provide protection against misuse, DeWine says he will make sure it isn’t used improperly.


....

> “I still think the protocol’s adequate,” DeWine said at a press conference yesterday. “We’re not aware of any misuse. When you get misuse, someone reports it… . The best deterrent is putting people in jail, quite frankly.”
> 
> While noting that his office didn’t need legislative permission to start using the technology because Ohio lets law enforcement access  driver’s license photos already, DeWine did admit that he should’ve alerted the public that the system had launched before it happened. He says police already face a felony if they abuse the system, but he’ll also form an advisory group to investigate what kind of protocol changes could be instituted to beef up security.

....

> “We don’t even know if it’s constitutional,” said Sen. Shirley Smith, who is planning on asking the Bureau of Criminal Investigation chief to turn off the system until it’s thoroughly checked out. “We know that it’s an invasion of privacy. I understand that he’s the attorney general, but I think we should have been apprised of it before it hit the street.”
> 
> The ACLU thinks the Bureau of Motor Vehicles should also let Ohioans know where their license photos are going, as the system is illegal in several states. A senior policy analyst for the ACLU says law enforcement officials should also have to submit some kind of paperwork at the very least, before running a photo through the system.
> 
> Without strict rules, “is law enforcement going to start attaching the system to public surveillance cameras and start keeping logs of  every person who walks by and when?” he said.


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Kim Holburn
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