• Nigerian/African Tech
  • Start Up
  • Internet
    • App
    • Mobile
    • Software
  • Gadgets
  • Money
  • Video
Tech News, Magazine & Review WordPress Theme 2017
  • Home
  • Africa
  • Business
  • Video
  • Metaverse
  • AI
  • Gadgets
  • Earnings
  • Tips
Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Post Type Selectors
  • Home
  • Africa
  • Business
  • Video
  • Metaverse
  • AI
  • Gadgets
  • Earnings
  • Tips
Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Post Type Selectors
TechBooky
Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Post Type Selectors
Home Software

Clearview AI Ordered To Delete Facial Recognition Data Of UK Residents

Olagoke Ajibola by Olagoke Ajibola
May 23, 2022
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

US-based facial recognition platform – Clearview AI, a company designed to support federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to gain intelligence has now received an order from privacy watchdog, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). The company has received an order from ICO to delete every piece of data belonging to residents of the UK. ICO didn’t stop at that but also went on to find Clearview to the tune of £7.5 million ($9.4 million) for failure to comply with the UK’s data protection laws. Over the last few years, the firm has collected images from the web and social media of people in Britain and elsewhere to create a global online database that can be used by law enforcement for facial recognition. Turns out that the UK is the fourth country to issue Clearview an order to delete all data within its confines between 2021 and 2022. Countries like Australia, France, and Italy have issued similar orders and fines for non-compliance and privacy violations. 

Also On TechBooky

watchOS 9 Debut With New Ways To Stay Connected, Active & Healthy

WWDC22: Apple Unveils iPadOS 16 With Multitasking Features

WWDC22: Apple Announces macOS Ventura With Smart Features.

WWDC22: Apple’s Next-Gen CarPlay Now Integrates Deeper Into Vehicles

WWDC22: Apple Debuts New iOS 16 Lock Screen With Widgets And More

Clearview has claimed that about 20 billion images of people around the world indexed from the internet and social sources like Facebook and Instagram are contained in the database of its facial recognition platform. The company does so without informing the individuals or asking for their consent. Before now the company has been responsible for the sale of its software to an array of private users and businesses. Following a lawsuit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the company recently agreed to restrict itself in the US to selling to federal agencies and police departments for the purpose of investigating crimes, enhancing public safety, and providing justice to victims.

In the past, Clearview has reportedly offered facial recognition technology to law enforcement agencies in the UK, they include the Metropolitan Police, Ministry of Defence, and National Crime Agency. According to the ICO’s latest decree, henceforth Clearview will “no longer offers its services to UK organizations.” However, the privacy watchdog notes that the data it has scraped from UK residents can still be used by customers in other countries.

In a press statement, the UK’s Information Commissioner John Edwards said Clearview had likely collected a great deal of information on UK residents. “The company not only enables identification of those people but effectively monitors their behavior and offers it as a commercial service. That is unacceptable,” said Edwards. “That is why we have acted to protect people in the UK by both fining the company and issuing an enforcement notice.”

UK’s Information Commissioner John Edwards in a statement explains that for the time the Clearview offered its service to the country, it must have collected a great deal of information on UK residents. “The company not only enables identification of those people but effectively monitors their behavior and offers it as a commercial service. That is unacceptable. That is why we have acted to protect people in the UK by both fining the company and issuing an enforcement notice.” Edwards added that people expect their personal information to be respected, regardless of where in the world their data is being used

The ICO claims the company has violated several tenets of UK data protection law by failing to use data in a way that is “fair and transparent” especially given that no UK resident actually gave consent to Clearview’s practice of scrapping images over the internet. The company has also failed to give “a lawful reason” for this practice and “failing to have a process in place to stop the data from being retained indefinitely.” The ICO has ordered that all data belonging to UK residents be deleted as well as a ban from collecting further images.

In a similar case in Italy earlier in the year, Clearview was issued an order to delete data and also pay fines under the  European Union (EU). A response by Clearview’s CEO Hoan Ton-That read that the company was simply not subject to EU legislation. According to ICO’s response to The Verge, the company has simply failed to comply with its orders. The ICO claims further fines can be issued if this continues. Many wonder if Clearview clearly ignored ICO’s first order, it’s unclear what another order will do.

In a statement by Clearview’s legal representative, Lee Wolosky, “While we appreciate the ICO’s desire to reduce their monetary penalty on Clearview AI, we nevertheless stand by our position that the decision to impose any fine is incorrect as a matter of law. Clearview AI is not subject to the ICO’s jurisdiction, and Clearview AI does no business in the U.K. at this time.” What this means is that, although ICO has issued a fine against Clearview and ordered the company to delete UK data, Clearview claims it has no business or customers in the country. So for now it’s unclear how this order might be enforced as claims are that Clearview doesn’t operate in the country. The ICO enforcement action comes after a joint investigation with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner. Before now countries like China have greatly expressed deep worries about facial recognition technology. 

The ICO has stated that Clearview has 28 days to appeal its ruling, and then 6 months to comply with it. The regulator added that its investigations team “will maintain contact with Clearview to make sure appropriate measures are taken.” When tossed with the question of how the company will be expected to distinguish between data belonging to UK residents and other individuals, the watchdog said “This is a question for Clearview to answer.” The ICO maintains its order to Clearview to delete every data belonging to residents of the UK.

Related Posts:

  • Residents In China Worry Over The Facial Recognition System
    Residents In China Worry Over The Facial Recognition System
  • The EU Is Considering Placing A Ban On Facial Recognition For 5 Years
    The EU Is Considering Placing A Ban On Facial Recognition…
  • Privacy: Facial Recognition Tool Lands Sweden School In Trouble
    Privacy: Facial Recognition Tool Lands Sweden School In…
  • Facebook Removes Face-Recognition Technology, Deletes Data
    Facebook Removes Face-Recognition Technology, Deletes Data
  • Anti-Fraud: China Introduces Face Scans for Mobile Phone Users
    Anti-Fraud: China Introduces Face Scans for Mobile Phone…
  • Facial Recognition Technology: Uses & Benefits For Businesses In 2020
    Facial Recognition Technology: Uses & Benefits For…
  • Face Spoofing Attacks: A Threat To Face Verification
    Face Spoofing Attacks: A Threat To Face Verification
  • Intel Says Good-Bye To Its AI-Powered RealSense Cameras
    Intel Says Good-Bye To Its AI-Powered RealSense Cameras
Tags: appartificial intelligenceClearviewCompanyCountrydataFacialicointernetRecognitionsoftwareUK
Olagoke Ajibola

Olagoke Ajibola

Olagoke Ajibola is a creative writer and content producer with an eye for details and excellence. He has a demonstrated history of telling stories for TV, Film and Online. Aside from being fascinated by the power of imagination, his other interest are travel, sport, reading and meeting people.

BROWSE BY CATEGORIES

Receive top tech news directly in your inbox

Loading

Recent

El Salvador’s $1.4 Billion Bitcoin City Wobbles As Cryptocurrency Crashes

El Salvador’s $1.4 Billion Bitcoin City Wobbles As Cryptocurrency Crashes

June 25, 2022
Nigerian Health Startup Healthtracka Raises $1.5m In Seed Funding

Nigerian Health Startup Healthtracka Raises $1.5m In Seed Funding

June 22, 2022
Ghana’s Fido Raises $30 Million In Series A Funding To Fuel Its Expansion Plans

Ghana’s Fido Raises $30 Million In Series A Funding To Fuel Its Expansion Plans

June 22, 2022
Nigerian Founded Kibo School Gets $2m In Funding For Online STEM Degrees

Nigerian Founded Kibo School Gets $2m In Funding For Online STEM Degrees

June 22, 2022
Nigerians Consumed 353,118 Terabytes Of Data In 2021

Nigerians Consumed 353,118 Terabytes Of Data In 2021

June 21, 2022
FBI Warns Of ‘Significant Threat’ By Crypto Scammers On LinkedIn

FBI Warns Of ‘Significant Threat’ By Crypto Scammers On LinkedIn

June 18, 2022
U.S. Senate Democrats Call For Common Mobile Charger Like The E.U

U.S. Senate Democrats Call For Common Mobile Charger Like The E.U

June 17, 2022
Share Memories More Easily With Snapchat New “Shared Stories” Feature

Snapchat Is Testing A Paid Subscription Version Called Snapchat Plus

June 17, 2022
Second Round Of Baby Shark NFTs Set To Roll Out

Second Round Of Baby Shark NFTs Set To Roll Out

June 17, 2022
Top 5 High-Quality Gifts For Your Best Friend

Top 5 High-Quality Gifts For Your Best Friend

June 17, 2022

Browse Archives

June 2022
MTWTFSS
 12345
6789101112
13141516171819
20212223242526
27282930 
« May    

Receive top tech news directly in your inbox

Loading

About Us

TechBooky

TechBooky is a social Tech blog with a special focus on the budding African Technology sector. TechBooky is currently based in Abuja, Nigeria.

Subscribe to TechBooky

Enter your email address to subscribe to TechBooky and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 17,953 other subscribers.

Popular Tags

AI (228) amazon (88) android (262) app (558) Apple (439) artificial intelligence (239) business (278) china (112) cloud (130) cryptocurrency (134) ecommerce (106) enterprise (227) facebook (461) gadget (395) gaming (148) google (525) government (365) guest post (108) instagram (131) internet (327) ios (230) iphone (191) microsoft (251) mobile (258) new feature (252) nigeria (269) privacy (126) research (131) samsung (127) security (351) smartphone (210) social media (631) software (380) startup (241) streaming (131) telecom (154) tips (310) transport (98) twitter (191) united states (178) users (102) videos (107) website (137) whatsapp (124) youtube (100)

Quick Links

  • Home
  • Africa
  • Business
  • Video
  • Metaverse
  • AI
  • Gadgets
  • Earnings
  • Tips

Popular Post

  • Trending
  • Comments
  • Latest
Apple’s WWDC22 Is Set For June 6th-10th As A Virtual Event

WWDC22: What To Expect From Apple’s Developer Conference

May 31, 2022
Top 2 Methods To Convert CSV To vCard/VCF In 2022

Top 2 Methods To Convert CSV To vCard/VCF In 2022

February 2, 2022
iOS 16 Brings Haptic Feedback To The iPhone’s Keyboard

iOS 16 Brings Haptic Feedback To The iPhone’s Keyboard

June 8, 2022
watchOS 9 Debut With New Ways To Stay Connected, Active & Healthy

watchOS 9 Debut With New Ways To Stay Connected, Active & Healthy

June 9, 2022
WWDC22: Apple Debuts New iOS 16 Lock Screen With Widgets And More

How To Download The iOS 16 Developer Beta To Try The New Features

June 8, 2022
watchOS 9 Will Drop Support For Apple Watch Series 3

watchOS 9 Will Drop Support For Apple Watch Series 3

June 8, 2022
El Salvador’s $1.4 Billion Bitcoin City Wobbles As Cryptocurrency Crashes

El Salvador’s $1.4 Billion Bitcoin City Wobbles As Cryptocurrency Crashes

June 25, 2022
Nigerian Health Startup Healthtracka Raises $1.5m In Seed Funding

Nigerian Health Startup Healthtracka Raises $1.5m In Seed Funding

June 22, 2022
Ghana’s Fido Raises $30 Million In Series A Funding To Fuel Its Expansion Plans

Ghana’s Fido Raises $30 Million In Series A Funding To Fuel Its Expansion Plans

June 22, 2022
Nigerian Founded Kibo School Gets $2m In Funding For Online STEM Degrees

Nigerian Founded Kibo School Gets $2m In Funding For Online STEM Degrees

June 22, 2022
Nigerians Consumed 353,118 Terabytes Of Data In 2021

Nigerians Consumed 353,118 Terabytes Of Data In 2021

June 21, 2022
FBI Warns Of ‘Significant Threat’ By Crypto Scammers On LinkedIn

FBI Warns Of ‘Significant Threat’ By Crypto Scammers On LinkedIn

June 18, 2022

Recent News

El Salvador’s $1.4 Billion Bitcoin City Wobbles As Cryptocurrency Crashes

El Salvador’s $1.4 Billion Bitcoin City Wobbles As Cryptocurrency Crashes

June 25, 2022
Nigerian Health Startup Healthtracka Raises $1.5m In Seed Funding

Nigerian Health Startup Healthtracka Raises $1.5m In Seed Funding

June 22, 2022
Ghana’s Fido Raises $30 Million In Series A Funding To Fuel Its Expansion Plans

Ghana’s Fido Raises $30 Million In Series A Funding To Fuel Its Expansion Plans

June 22, 2022
Nigerian Founded Kibo School Gets $2m In Funding For Online STEM Degrees

Nigerian Founded Kibo School Gets $2m In Funding For Online STEM Degrees

June 22, 2022
Nigerians Consumed 353,118 Terabytes Of Data In 2021

Nigerians Consumed 353,118 Terabytes Of Data In 2021

June 21, 2022
FBI Warns Of ‘Significant Threat’ By Crypto Scammers On LinkedIn

FBI Warns Of ‘Significant Threat’ By Crypto Scammers On LinkedIn

June 18, 2022
  • About TechBooky
  • Submit Article
  • Advertise Here
  • Contact us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Disclaimer
  • Login

© 2021 Design By Tech Booky Elite

Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Post Type Selectors
  • Home
  • Africa
  • Business
  • Video
  • Metaverse
  • AI
  • Gadgets
  • Earnings
  • Tips

© 2021 Design By Tech Booky Elite

Posting....