Minister of Telangana KTR calls for greater transparency in the government’s use of personal technology

Telangana Information Technology Minister K.T. Rama Rao said one of the most challenging challenges in using technologies such as face recognition combined with artificial intelligence (AI) is gaining citizens ’trust that the government is using such data impartially.

According to him, the use of such technology also remains difficult because citizens need to be reassured that they are not being monitored until they have been warned.

The minister also said that the only way to achieve this is to first define the regulatory powers that each government organization will need.

“These powers should be given to them in a parliamentary and completely transparent way,” Rama Rao said, adding that with the right regulatory coverage, the police can much more easily help citizens in their needs.

During a panel discussion on “AI on the Street: Managing Trust in the Public Square” at The world Economic Forum in Davos, he said face recognition has not only reduced dependence on physical resources, but also reduced the time authorities take to identify criminals and missing persons.

The panel discussion was also attended by Takayuki Morita, President of NEC Japan and Chief Executive Officer and Representative Representative, Angie Nicole OD, Executive Director of Ushahidi, South Africa, and Cohen van Ostrom, CEO and Founder of Edge Tech.

However, he stressed the importance of transparency, saying that every step in which the government uses facial recognition before it is used by government organizations must be made public.

According to the minister, the government recognizes the benefits of face recognition in regulation and police. Therefore, public confidence in this system should be reinforced by additional systems that can expose them to the use of the method and only then expand, he added.

In addition, Rama Rao said: “We need minds that are well versed in AI, machine learning, blockchain, data science and the risks associated with their use. The data used must be fully protected and security must be verified. ”

Concerns about face recognition

In recent years, many have questioned the accuracy of face recognition technologies and their role in identity theft.

In some situations, law enforcement officials improperly involved innocent people in riots. In addition, many people are concerned about the management and preservation of identity, which worries privacy advocates around the world.

Lack of transparency in how information is stored and maintained is one of the most common problems of society. The fundamental right of citizens is under the constant control of the government and to store photos without their consent is violated by face recognition.

According to human rights activists, face recognition combined with ubiquitous cameras and data analysis leads to mass monitoring, which can jeopardize the freedom and private rights of citizens.

For example, in China, this technology has been used by the authorities for a long time. Its use in the country is growing, from street cameras to applications that require biometric authentication, but a survey conducted by state media found that Chinese citizens are skeptical of its use in public.

Even this technology is also being used by the Chinese authorities to target Uighurs and test their emotions in the Xinjiang region.

However, in another part of the world, the European Commission has received an open letter from 51 organizations demanding a ban on all mass surveillance programs. Similarly, more than 43,000 Europeans have joined Reclaim Your Face, a campaign to end biometric surveillance in the EU.

It should be noted that the European Commission has banned the technology of recognizing faces in public places for up to five years in 2020 as part of a regulatory review that included rules on confidentiality and ethical abuse.

Despite concerns about face recognition, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has proposed several principles to help ensure the ethical use of technology. These are:

• Institutions must obtain informed written consent from citizens before adding biometric data to their identity recognition database.
• Technology should not be used to determine skin color, race, religion, national origin, gender, age, or disability.
• Without the express written consent of the data subject, the results of face recognition technology should not be traded or disseminated.
• Citizens should be able to view, update and delete their personal data, as well as track any changes made to the data.
• Organizations should establish policies for data retention and use, as well as technical mechanisms needed to ensure accountability.
• Identity data should be located, managed and protected by organizations that have specialized security personnel, as there is always a risk of cyberattacks and data theft.
• End users should maintain an audit trail that includes details of the collection, use, and disclosure of information, as well as date and time and information request details.

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