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M Oliveira e Carmo

Buying lunch using facial recognition is banned in schools in the UK

Privacy in the UK: UK leaders intervened before the strategy gained full power.

After backlash from some privacy experts, schools in the UK stopped the use of facial recognition in cafeterias. The method consists on the facial recognition of students in school cafeterias, so that they can pay for their lunch. Last month, the Information Commissioner's Office in the United Kingdom had to intervene following the implementation of this data processing in nine schools in North Ayrshire, Scotland. It was expected that more schools would adopt this procedure, since it was defended as a favorable method to beat COVID-19, as it dispenses the use of money and touch. However, the Information Commissioner's Office came out negative, arguing further that if the police are heavily criticised for using the same technology around the country, introducing it into schools will be even less appropriate. Silkie Carlo, director of Big Brother Watch, pointed out the following: "It's standardizing biometric identity checks for basic activities. It's not necessary to resort to the technologies used in airport controls so children can have lunch." As reported by the BBC, the local council temporarily banned the program, while one of the schools banned the scheme completely. "While we are confident that the new facial recognition system is operating as planned, we feel it is safer to use the old PIN (personal identification number) system while considering incoming inquiries," indicated the North Ayrshire Council. CRB Cunninghams, one of the companies that was mentioned as involved in launching the strategy, describes the technology as "a contactless biometric method that increases speed of service while keeping fingerprints secure." The European Parliament is currently reviewing rules to control the use of facial recognition and artificial intelligence in the public and private sectors.




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