*This is the sort of thing that the ACLU should be doing, instead of working as a * *Social Justice propaganda mill. Now it would be great if they'd get back to honoring* *the First Amendment, and stand up for the free speech rights of all Americans,* *even if they're on the right, and/or speak out on taboo subjects.*
*MCM * [image: ACLU] > <https://link.aclu.org/click/20635522.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> > > > *We’re Taking Clearview AI to Court to End its Privacy-Destroying Face > Surveillance Activities* > > *FILED 5/28/2020 9:00 AM DOROTHY BROWN CIRCUIT CLERK COOK COUNTY, IL > 2020CH04353 9337839* > > *Return Date: No return date scheduled Hearing Date: 9/25/2020 9:30 AM > Courtroom Number: 2305 Location: District 1 Court Cook County, IL* > > *The company’s surveillance activities are a threat to privacy, safety, > and security.* > > *[image: Clearview AI facial recognition software logo on the glowing > screen and blurred faces from social media on the background]* > [image: ACLU] > <https://link.aclu.org/click/20635522.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>*Nathan > Freed Wessler **, Staff Attorney May 28, 2020* > > > > > > *For several years, a little-known start-up based in New York has been > amassing a database of billions of our faceprints — unique biometric > identifiers akin to a fingerprint or DNA profile — drawn from personal > photos on our social media accounts and elsewhere online. The company has > captured these faceprints in secret, without our knowledge, much less our > consent, using everything from casual selfies to photos of birthday > parties, college graduations, weddings, and so much more. Unbeknownst to > the public, this company has offered up this massive faceprint database to > private companies, police, federal agencies, and wealthy individuals, > allowing them to secretly track and target whomever they wished using face > recognition > technology. That > company is Clearview AI, and it will end privacy as we know it if it isn’t > stopped. We’re taking the company to court* > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > * in Illinois today on behalf of organizations that represent survivors of > sexual assault and domestic violence, undocumented immigrants, and other > vulnerable communities. As the groups make clear, Clearview’s face > surveillance activities violate the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy > Act (BIPA), and represent an unprecedented threat to our security and > safety. Face recognition technology offers a surveillance capability unlike > any other technology in the past. It makes it dangerously easy to identify > and track us at protests, AA meetings, counseling sessions, political > rallies, religious gatherings, and more. For our clients — organizations > that serve survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault, undocumented > immigrants, and people of color — this surveillance system is dangerous and > even life-threatening. It empowers abusive ex-partners and serial > harassers, exploitative companies, and ICE agents to track and target > domestic violence and sexual assault survivors, undocumented immigrants, > and other vulnerable communities. By building a mass database of billions > of faceprints without our knowledge or consent, Clearview has created the > nightmare scenario that we’ve long feared, and has crossed the ethical > bounds that many companies have refused to even attempt. Neither the United > States government nor any American company is known to have ever compiled > such a massive trove of biometrics. Adding fuel to the fire, Clearview > sells access to a smartphone app that allows its customers — and even those > using the app on a trial basis — to upload a photo of an unknown person and > instantaneously receive a set of matching photos. Clearview’s actions > clearly violate BIPA. The law requires companies that collect, capture, or > obtain an Illinois resident’s biometric identifier — such as a fingerprint, > faceprint, or iris scan — to first notify that individual and obtain their > written consent. Clearview’s practices are exactly the threat to privacy > that the legislature intended to address, and demonstrate why states across > the country should adopt legal protections like the ones in Illinois. In > press statements, Clearview has tried to claim its actions are somehow > protected by the First Amendment. Clearview is as free to look at online > photos as anyone with an internet connection. But what it can’t do is > capture our faceprints — uniquely identifying biometrics — from those > photos without consent. That’s not speech; it’s conduct that the state of > Illinois has a strong interest in regulating in order to protect its > residents against abuse. If allowed, Clearview will destroy our rights to > anonymity and privacy — and the safety and security that both bring. People > can change their names and addresses to shield their whereabouts and > identities from individuals who seek to harm them, but they can’t change > their faces. That’s why we’re teaming up with lawyers at the ACLU of > Illinois and the law firm of Edelson PC, a nationally recognized leader in > consumer privacy litigation, to put a stop to Clearview’s egregious > violations of privacy. We are asking an Illinois state court to order the > company to delete faceprints gathered from Illinois residents without > consent, and to stop capturing new faceprints unless it complies with the > Illinois law. There is a groundswell of opposition to face surveillance > technology, and this litigation is the latest chapter in an intensifying > fight to protect our privacy rights against the dangers of this menacing > technology. Across the nation, the ACLU has been advocating for bans on > police use of face recognition technology, leading to strong laws in places > like Oakland, San Francisco, and Berkeley, California, and Springfield and > Cambridge, Massachusetts, as well as a statewide prohibition on use of the > technology on police body cams in California. We won’t let companies like > Clearview trample on our right to privacy.* > > > _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ > > *IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT, CHANCERY > DIVISION* > > *AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION, AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION OF > ILLINOIS, CHICAGO ALLIANCE AGAINST SEXUAL EXPLOITATION, SEX WORKERS > OUTREACH PROJECT CHICAGO, ILLINOIS STATE PUBLIC INTEREST RESEARCH GROUP, > INC., and MUJERES LATINAS EN ACCIÓN, Plaintiffs,* > > * v. CLEARVIEW AI, INC., a Delaware corporation, Defendant.* > > > *IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT, CHANCERY > DIVISION* > > *AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION, AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION OF > ILLINOIS, CHICAGO ALLIANCE AGAINST SEXUAL EXPLOITATION, SEX WORKERS > OUTREACH PROJECT CHICAGO, ILLINOIS STATE PUBLIC INTEREST RESEARCH GROUP, > INC., and MUJERES LATINAS EN ACCIÓN, Plaintiffs,* > > * v. CLEARVIEW AI, INC., a Delaware corporation, Defendant.* > > *FILED* > > *5/28/2020 9:00 AM* > *DOROTHY BROWN* > *CIRCUIT CLERK* > *COOK COUNTY, IL* > *2020CH04353* > *9337839* > > > *Return Date: No return date scheduled3* > *Hearing Date: 9/25/2020 9:30 AM * > *Courtroom Number: 2305* > *Location: District 1 Court* > *Cook County, IL* > -- If you appreciate News From Underground, please consider making a donation — either a one-time gift or a monthly subscription: http://markcrispinmiller.com/support/ Thank you for your support. 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