Lucas D. Introna, Helen Nissenbaum: Facial Recognition Technology. A Survey of Policy and Implementation Issues (2009)
Filed under report | Tags: · biometrics, ethics, identity, policy, privacy, software, surveillance, technology
Facial recognition technology (FRT) has emerged as an attractive solution to address many contemporary needs for identification and the verification of identity claims. It brings together the promise of other biometric systems, which attempt to tie identity to individually distinctive features of the body, and the more familiar functionality of visual surveillance systems. This report develops a socio-political analysis that bridges the technical and social-scientific literatures on FRT and addresses the unique challenges and concerns that attend its development, evaluation, and specific operational uses, contexts, and goals. It highlights the potential and limitations of the technology, noting those tasks for which it seems ready for deployment, those areas where performance obstacles may be overcome by future technological developments or sound operating procedures, and still other issues which appear intractable. Its concern with efficacy extends to ethical considerations.
Report of the Center for Catastrophe Preparedness and Response, New York University
April 2009
60 pages
Daniel J. Solove: The Digital Person. Technology and Privacy in the Information Age (2004)
Filed under book | Tags: · database, identity, law, politics, privacy, technology
Seven days a week, twenty-four hours a day, electronic databases are compiling information about you. As you surf the Internet, an unprecedented amount of your personal information is being recorded and preserved forever in the digital minds of computers. For each individual, these databases create a profile of activities, interests, and preferences used to investigate backgrounds, check credit, market products, and make a wide variety of decisions affecting our lives. The creation and use of these databases—which Daniel J. Solove calls “digital dossiers”—has thus far gone largely unchecked. In this startling account of new technologies for gathering and using personal data, Solove explains why digital dossiers pose a grave threat to our privacy.
The Digital Person sets forth a new understanding of what privacy is, one that is appropriate for the new challenges of the Information Age. Solove recommends how the law can be reformed to simultaneously protect our privacy and allow us to enjoy the benefits of our increasingly digital world.
Publisher NYU Press, 2004
ISBN 0814798462, 9780814798461
283 pages
PDF (EPUB, updated on 2013-2-14)
Comments (4)D. E. Wittkower (ed.): Facebook and Philosophy: What’s on Your Mind? (2010)
Filed under book | Tags: · facebook, internet, journalism, media activism, networks, philosophy, privacy, twitter, web 2.0
Facebook and Philosophy is an entertaining, multi-faceted exploration of what Facebook means for us and for our relationships. With discussions ranging from the nature of friendship and its relationship to “friending,” to the (debatable) efficacy of “online activism,” this book is the most extensive and systematic attempt to understand Facebook yet. And with plenty of new perspectives on Twitter and Web 2.0 along the way, this fun, thought-provoking book is a serious and significant contribution for anyone working with social media, whether in academia, journalism, public relations, activism, or business. Exploring far-reaching questions — Can our interactions on Facebook help us care about each other more? Does Facebook signal the death of privacy, or (perhaps worse yet) the death of our desire for privacy? — Facebook and Philosophy is vital reading for anyone involved in social networks today.
Publisher Open Court, 2010
Volume 50 of Popular Culture and Philosophy
ISBN 0812696751, 9780812696752
288 pages
PDF (updated on 2012-3-9)
Comments (2)