Global biometrics provider supports industry collaboration on facial recognition tech

NEC produces face, iris, fingerprint, palm print, finger vein, voice and ear acoustic recognition technologies, and has over 700 biometric recognition installations in over 70 countries around the world. Recently, we have seen renewed calls for government regulation and discussions about how the biometrics industry can build a foundation of responsibility to protect people against discrimination, invasions of privacy and violations of human rights.

The biometrics provider has established a Digital Trust Business Strategy Division to create and promote a strategy based on Human Rights by Design, considering the impact of the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) on society and the utilization of biometric information on human rights and privacy.

n the United States, for example, the Department of Homeland Security is using facial recognition technology at more than a dozen airports to positively identify travellers entering and exiting the United States. Three days after the technology was introduced at Dulles International Airport, an imposter was stopped using a fake document, according to the company’s press release.

As recently as late November 2018, the lead architect of this system from the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reported that it had identified at least 36 imposters so far.