Welcome to FindBiometrics’ digest of identity industry news. Here’s what you need to know about the world of digital identity and biometrics today:
Third Party Vendor Escapes BIPA Liability
In a potentially significant ruling, an Illinois circuit court judge dismissed a class action lawsuit against a third party vendor under Illinois’s Biometric Information Privacy Act. The lawsuit concerned a trucking company’s use of a driver monitoring system that featured facial recognition, naming both Beelman Truck Co. and dash-cam developer Samsara as defendants. But the latter successfully argued that holding third party vendors responsible for the actions of their customers would lead to absurd results. Samsara also noted that it had provided customers with a sample BIPA policy and consent form, and required them to confirm that they had established consent from their drivers.
French Legislation Rules Out Facial Recognition for Olympics Security
Forthcoming legislation is poised to rule out the potential use of facial recognition at the 2024 summer Olympics in Paris. Quoted in Le Parisien, Minister of Sports Amélie Oudéa-Castéra said that draft legislation concerning the organization of the games includes language that “totally and explicitly excludes the use of facial recognition.” The bill is expected to be submitted to Parliament in the coming weeks.
UIDAI Sets Aadhaar Enrolment Deadlines
The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), which oversees the country’s Aadhaar biometric national ID program, has mandated the registration of biometrics for children at age five, and the re-registration of their biometrics at the age of 15. The move comes shortly after reports that Indian authorities were planning to make Aadhaar enrolment at birth mandatory across the country; the practice is already in place in 16 states in the country.
Amid Market Turmoil, AI Cybersecurity Startups Rake in Funding
AI-driven cybersecurity startups have raised about $1.2 billion in investment funding this year, according to a new analysis from Crunchbase. Given market conditions and ongoing macro turmoil, it’s on pace to be a down year in comparison to 2021’s record $2.1 billion in investment. But this year’s funding is still coming in at an impressive level, with 2022 already confirmed as the third consecutive year in which over $1 billion flowed into the space.
Ghana Authorities Fight National Service Fraud With Biometrics
Officials in the Volta region of Ghana have now implemented a facial recognition system for the National Service Scheme, and are celebrating its success in fighting identity fraud. The National Service Scheme is a mandatory national service program for graduates of tertiary institutions. Its new biometric system uses facial recognition to match participants’ national ID cards to images they upload during registration, and to photos taken in-person during the registration process.
Startup Pays Mobile Users to Be AI Training Subjects
California-based Bobidi is looking to crowdsource AI model testing by offering cash rewards to end users. At the moment, the AI models being tested on the Bobidi app are largely concerned with speech recognition, prompting users to record question-and-answer sessions with friends and family using their phones. But there is also a ‘Computer Vision Model’ that invites users to “Make various facial expressions and get rewards.”
Digital ID Factors Into Korea-Singapore Digital Partnership
Digital ID is one of 11 key components of a new cooperation agreement established between South Korea and Singapore. As the Korea-Singapore Digital Partnership Agreement (KSDPA) explains, “secure and trusted digital identities enable greater and easier access to services for both individuals and companies,” so the countries’ efforts to promote interoperability are expected to “reduce barriers in cross-border trade and enables businesses and individuals to navigate the international digital economy with greater ease, confidence, and security.” The agreement comes shortly after a trio of Korean mobile operators enables users of the Pass mobile app to create virtual versions of their resident registration IDs.
Mobile ID Comes to Penn State
Penn State University has become the latest post-secondary school to embrace mobile student IDs. Starting in January, school administrators will begin rolling out the new ‘Penn State ID+’ card via Transact’s eAccounts app, enabling students to access residence halls and other campus facilities by tapping their smartphones. They will also be able to use the mobile ID app to pay for meals and use laundry services on campus.
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November 23, 2022 – by Alex Perala
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