Face recognition has been a bone of contention for years: for supporters it’s a quick way to identify criminals, for opponents it’s a privacy nightmare. The latter should be confirmed by the current case. A New Jersey attorney was prevented from attending a Christmas musical with her nine-year-old daughter using extremely questionable means. 44-year-old Kelly Conlon accompanied her nine-year-old daughter as she attended the ‘Christmas Spactacular’ with her Boy Scout troupe at Radio City Music Hall in Manhattan, New York.
The Internet is full of hot IT news and stale Pr0n. In between there are always gems that are too good for /dev/null.
As reported by the New York Times, she was prevented from entering the hall by security personnel. Conlon told the paper they knew her name and law firm. They informed her that she had been identified using facial recognition software and that her law firm was banned from entering the premises because they were suing the owner – MSG Entertainment.
Created a list of unwanted people
The company operates several venues in New York, including the eponymous Madison Square Garden and the Beacon Theater. CEO James L. Doland, a busy billionaire, banned all law firms litigating against the company in the summer. This also applies to lawyers who are not entrusted with the cases and includes all venues.
Affected lawyers end up on a list of undesirables – the ban is implemented via facial recognition. Conlon claimed that she had never sued MSG Entertainment, but she still had to wait outside for her daughter.
MSG Entertainment pointed out in a statement to the New York Times that all visitors are informed about the use of facial recognition. Since this was not the first case of this kind in New York, a discussion about the abuse of facial recognition has now flared up. An instrument that was originally intended to identify serious criminals and terrorists is used to take revenge on uncomfortable law firms.
(mawi)
