Microsoft calls to regulate face recognition technology
New York, July 14 : At a time when facial recognition technology is fast becoming a part of our lives, Microsoft has become the first tech giant to initiate a call for regulations to limit the technology that can be used for mass surveillance affecting civil liberties.
In a blog post on Friday, Microsoft President Brad Smith said a government initiative to regulate the proper use of facial recognition technology is the need of the hour.
"We believe US Congress should create a bipartisan expert commission to assess the best way to regulate the use of facial recognition technology in the US," Smith said.
The purpose of such a commission "should include advice to Congress on what types of new laws and regulations are needed, as well as stronger practices to ensure proper congressional oversight of this technology across the executive branch", the Microsoft President noted.
Several tech companies, including Microsoft, have utilised face-recognition technology in the past several years to turn time-consuming work to catalog photos into something both instantaneous and useful.
However, Microsoft has already rejected requests to deploy the technology in situations involving "human rights risks", Smith informed.
Smith earlier called for a new digital Geneva Convention that commits governments to defending and protecting civilians from state-sponsored cyber-attacks.
"We live in a nation of laws, and the government needs to play an important role in regulating facial recognition technology.
"A world with vigorous regulation of products that are useful but potentially troubling is better than a world devoid of legal standards," Smith suggested.
The computer-assisted facial recognition can recognise people's faces from a photo or through a camera.
This technology can catalog your photos, help reunite families or potentially be misused and abused by private companies and public authorities alike.
"Facial recognition technology raises issues that go to the heart of fundamental human rights protections like privacy and freedom of expression," Smith wrote.
In recent weeks, a group of Amazon employees objected to its contract with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), while reiterating concerns raised by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) about law enforcement's use of facial recognition technology.
IT company Salesforce's employees have raised the same issues related to immigration authorities and these agencies' use of their products.
"Demands increasingly are surfacing for tech companies to limit the way government agencies use facial recognition and other technology," Smith said.
The only effective way to manage the use of technology by a government is for the government proactively to manage this use itself, the Microsoft President added.
Issues relating to facial recognition go well beyond the borders of the US and "it requires active engagement by governments, academics, tech companies and civil society internationally".
"As we move forward, we're committed to establishing a transparent set of principles for facial recognition technology that we will share with the public," Smith informed.
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Bairstow's century powers PBKS eight wickets win over KKR in IPL
Kolkata, Apr 26: Led by Jonny Bairstow's incredible hundred, Punjab Kings set a new world record for the highest run chase in the history of T20 cricket as they overhauled the 262-run target set by Kolkata Knight Riders with eight wickets to spare in the IPL here on Friday.
PBKS bettered South Africa's 259/4 against West Indies in March last year. In the IPL, Rajasthan Royals held the previous record for chasing down 224 against KKR at Eden Gardens recently, equalling the record they had set against then Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) in 2020 in Sharjah.
Sent into bat, Kolkata Knight Riders scored 261/6 but PBKS completed the chase with eight balls to spare.
KKR rode on a 138-run partnership between openers Phil Salt (75 off 37 balls) and Sunil Narine (71 off 32 balls).
The batters that followed the openers then consolidated the home team's position and took them to an imposing total.
In reply, PBKS too were off to a great start and scored 93 runs for the loss of Prabhsimran Singh's wicket in the powerplay.
Prabhsimran blazed away to a 20-ball 54 before getting run out. Bairstow continued his brutal onslaught to help PBKS pull off a stunning win. Bairstow (108 off 48 balls) was well-supported by the in-from Shashank Singh who smashed 68 in only 28 balls.
Brief scores:
Kolkata Knight Riders: 261/6 in 20 overs (Phil Salt 75, Sunil Narine 71).
Punjab Kings: 262/2 in 18.4 overs (Jonny Bairstow 108, Prabhsimran Singh 54, Shashank Singh 68).
