Madison Square Garden's Facial Recognition Tech Sparks Privacy Debate
NDTV
The operator of the arena is under fire for using the software to identify and eject certain lawyers from events at the venue.
The heated debate over facial recognition technology has a new flashpoint: Manhattan's celebrated Madison Square Garden, home to the New York Knicks basketball team and countless Billy Joel concerts.
The operator of the arena, where Joe Frazier defeated Muhammad Ali in 1971's "Fight of the Century," is under fire for using the software to identify and eject certain lawyers from events at the venue -- because they are associated with ongoing litigation involving MSG.
Local lawmakers want to halt the crackdown, which rights campaigners say is a gross abuse of a technology that is already raising fears about privacy and control from America to China.
"When the rich and powerful are free to use facial recognition to track the public it puts everyone else at risk," said Albert Fox Cahn, executive director of STOP, a non-profit that advocates for privacy.
