A day without biometric databases is a day without sunshine. If the more extremist privacy advocates pivot from outlawing AI to outlawing biometrics, we could have all sorts of fun.
And such a ban is possible. In 2022, three political parties in the European Union Parliament supported a ban on facial recognition in public places.
“We’re going to ban what we believe is not according to our values, the deployment [of biometric identification] in public spaces where we as Europeans, we believe that we need to be free of the risks of mass surveillance,” said Renew’s Dragoș Tudorache. “The prevailing position in this house is to support the ban for this technology.”
In the end it didn’t happen, but just one bad story could cause the proposal to reappear.
So what happens in the alternate universe where we don’t need biometric databases any more? Such as criminal databases, or even corporate databases for access control systems?
Criminal investigations without biometric databases
Take the night that a drunk and disorderly man spent some time in the police station.
“What’s your name?”
“Jim Member.”
“No, your REAL name.”
“That is my real name! Here’s my driver’s license.”
The booking officer examined it and handed it back. “Ever been arrested before?”
“Never.”
The booking officer set the arrest paperwork on the dusty live scan station, unplugged months ago. “Follow me. We have to hold you for a bit. Then we’ll either hold you for a week and conduct a full investigation of your inked prints against the state card files, or just let you go, Jim.”
And no corporate access control databases
Or the next morning, when Sheila overslept and was almost late for work.
After frenetic preparation and reckless driving, she pulled into the parking lot and rushed toward the front door, relieved that she had made it.
But when she glanced toward the camera to unlock the door, nothing happened.
Then she noticed that the status monitor said “FR OFFLINE.”
That message was followed by another: “PLEASE ENTER 10 DIGIT EMPLOYEE ID.”
What is my employee ID number, she thought to herself as the monitor time advanced to 8:01—one minute after her one-on-one with her boss was supposed to start.
But what about…
Making agencies and enterprises work without biometric databases is an extreme way to take care of a legitimate problem: the misuse of biometrics.
But like any data misuse, the solution is to identify and punish the abusers, not to throw out the technology altogether.
If your technology helps agencies and enterprises reduce misuse and promote privacy, Bredemarket can help you tell your story. Talk to me.
