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Many Americans not aware of being tracked with facial recognition while shopping

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Re: Many Americans not aware of being tracked with facial recognition while shopping

#31

Post by jacquesm »

gruez wrote: post #25
jacquesm wrote: post #23

And: if you have a smartphone in your pocket there will be attempts to couple your smartphone device ID to your mugshots from various angles.

Isn't that a non-issue since a few years ago, because google/apple put in mac randomization?

That's very well possible but there are numerous workaround for that that would still allow you to uniquely identify a phone. Regardless: the push to identify people out and about, the push to tie those identities to online behavior is real and relentless, and relatively little is done to curb this. Personally I think all of these transaction should be done only with consenting adults or by - presumably properly overseen - law enforcement acting after they obtained a warrant.

Re: Many Americans not aware of being tracked with facial recognition while shopping

#32

Post by gruez »

jacquesm wrote: post #26
FridayoLeary wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Americans seem to focus on themselves more than other nationalities.

This is common the world over. What is not common the world over is that there is this thing called exceptionalism which America uses to tell itself that they are the good guys in everything they do and in general better at everything they do. This is something I haven't experienced anywhere else. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_exceptionalism

Why is this comment thread veering off to "American exceptionalism"?. The straigtforward answer as to why the title says "Many americans..." is that they conducted a nation-wide survey of americans. They could have done a global survey, but they didn't, probably because:

1. it would be much more expensive and logistically challenging (eg. localizing the questions)

2. the readership of the media company that commissioned the survey is mostly american

It's not because of "American exceptionalism" or whatever.

Re: Many Americans not aware of being tracked with facial recognition while shopping

#33

Post by dopylitty »

emodendroket wrote: post #22
celim307 wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hard to say if all the data collection that happens online is any better

Isn't that the point? No way out really.

Sure there’s a way out. Elect representatives who will vote to outlaw the use of facial recognition and other tracking technologies.

Re: Many Americans not aware of being tracked with facial recognition while shopping

#34

Post by jacquesm »

Workaccount2 wrote: post #28

Wait till it can ID shoplifting, and people get added to a shared database of blacklisted shoppers. You can steal no problem, but one day you'll be approached and asked to leave upon entering almost anywhere.

This is already a reality:

https://recfaces.com/articles/how-to-catch-shoplifter

https://www.theverge.com/2021/7/14/22576236/retail-stores-fa...

https://www.cnet.com/tech/services-and-software/with-facial-...

Re: Many Americans not aware of being tracked with facial recognition while shopping

#35

Post by dogman144 »

Whoever builds a wearable “sparkler” that is able to disrupt digital cameras or the underlying tech in a way that doesn’t require the user to wear a large scarf or similar is going to really usher in an interesting part of history.

Re: Many Americans not aware of being tracked with facial recognition while shopping

#36

Post by FridayoLeary »

jacquesm wrote: post #26
FridayoLeary wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Americans seem to focus on themselves more than other nationalities.

This is common the world over. What is not common the world over is that there is this thing called exceptionalism which America uses to tell itself that they are the good guys in everything they do and in general better at everything they do. This is something I haven't experienced anywhere else. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_exceptionalism

I have never heard any politician here say "British people are x" or that "British people feel y". In America such expressions appear in almost every speech. Likewise for news headlines etc. In the UK the title would be "customers not aware" and the like. This is to give the (correct) impression that the entire nation has in no way been united by this fact. But in the US it seems more common to use terminology that lumps everyone together, to the exclusion of the rest of the world.

Re: Many Americans not aware of being tracked with facial recognition while shopping

#37

Post by jacquesm »

gruez wrote: post #32
jacquesm wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is common the world over. What is not common the world over is that there is this thing called exceptionalism which America uses to tell itself that they are the good guys in everything they do and in general better at everything they do. This is something I haven't experienced anywhere else. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_exceptionalism

Why is this comment thread veering off to "American exceptionalism"?. The straigtforward answer as to why the title says "Many americans..." is that they conducted a nation-wide survey of americans. They could have done a global survey, but they didn't, probably because: 1. it would be much more expensive and logistically challenging (eg. localizing the questions) 2. the readership of the media company that commissio…

Because it's a discussion board.

Re: Many Americans not aware of being tracked with facial recognition while shopping

#39

Post by MichaelGroves »

Workaccount2 wrote: post #28

Wait till it can ID shoplifting, and people get added to a shared database of blacklisted shoppers. You can steal no problem, but one day you'll be approached and asked to leave upon entering almost anywhere.

When store employees are told not to physically detain any shoplifter, it hardly matters at all if they tell a serial shoplifter to leave the store. The shoplifter will walk around the confronting employee, grab whatever they like off the shelves, and walk out without paying for it. (I've seen this happen numerous times at 7-11, where the facial recognition is being run by store employees using their eyeballs/brains.)

The real victims of this will be the false positives. People who follow the rules, but get incorrectly classified as shoplifters. They will be the ones who are actually turned away at the door.

Re: Many Americans not aware of being tracked with facial recognition while shopping

#40

Post by minton »

hanniabu wrote: post #27
blagie wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Then we can stop going to stores and shop more online, since another upside of bricks-and-mortar is gone.

Then it's time to build yourself a greenhouse

I think I understand your general point. However, I can’t help but feel like it’s a form of giving up. We should be “yelling” loudly to our politicians while boycotting retailers that implement this.
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