Tags: biometric data

A team of researchers at Purdue University has created a privacy‑focused technique that lets users edit photos with AI while keeping sensitive facial data on the device. The method masks designated regions, such as faces, before the image is sent to an AI service, uploads only the non‑masked portion, and then seamlessly reintegrates the original masked area after editing. The approach works with existing commercial generative AI models, requires no model retraining, and has been validated by testing AI classifiers on masked versus unmasked images, showing a dramatic drop in attribute‑recognition accuracy. The researchers have published their findings in IEEE Transactions on Artificial Intelligence and filed a patent, positioning the technology for future commercial adoption. Weiterlesen

Elon Musk’s xAI has asked staff to provide facial and voice data to train its new AI companion, Ani, a sexually themed chatbot offered to SuperGrok subscribers. Employees were told participation was a job requirement, signing release forms that grant the company a perpetual, royalty‑free license to use their likenesses. Some workers expressed concerns about privacy and potential misuse in deepfakes, but the company maintained the data collection is essential to its mission. Weiterlesen

Google has confirmed that its AI-powered Ask Photos feature is currently unavailable to users in Texas and Illinois. The company cited ongoing efforts to determine how to expand access, while industry observers link the restriction to recent state settlements over biometric data collection in Google Photos. Both Ask Photos and the related Conversational Editing tool rely on facial recognition, which raises legal challenges under state privacy laws that require explicit consent from subjects captured in photos. Weiterlesen

U.S. Senators Edward Markey, Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley sent a letter to Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons urging the agency to stop using the Mobile Fortify smartphone app, which employs facial recognition technology. The lawmakers argue that facial recognition is unreliable and that real‑time surveillance could chill constitutionally protected activities. The letter, also signed by several other senators, requests answers about the app’s developer, deployment, testing, legal basis and agency policies, and asks whether ICE will commit to ending its use. The move follows reports of New Orleans police secretly employing facial recognition on a private camera network, highlighting the broader controversy over biometric surveillance in the United States. Weiterlesen