A photo from open sources
NSA uses sophisticated sophisticated computer software recognition of human faces. Its employees expect to create a database that allows quick identification suspected of terrorism and other crimes anywhere planets, even if he changed his appearance, tells The New York Times
Agency intercepts images of people attached to messages emails, text messages posted on social networks and transmitted during video conferencing.
According to 2011 documents released by a former employee NSA by Edward Snowden, agency intercepts millions images per day, of which about 55 thousand are suitable for recognition by computer programs. Along with prints fingers and other identifiers, they make up an extensive base personal data, the publication writes.
“This is a sophisticated method that allows you to match and compile biographical and biometric data allowing quickly and efficiently achieve the goal, “- quotes The New York Times one of the documents of 2010.
An NSA reports several photos unknown man – in some pictures he is bearded, in others smoothly shaved, filmed in different conditions and in different places. With this other information is matched – for example, where and how is this the person was recorded by surveillance cameras, security services, in including transport.
Another example: a program by scanning photos completely bald young man next to another man in front of the water park and a man completely unlike him with magnificent hair, in completely different clothes and in another place, with confidence defines him as one and the same person.
“It’s not yet clear how many people around the world and how many Americans were thus involved in the process of total surveillance. Legislation cannot yet effectively protect citizens from infringement on the image of their faces. However, it is clear that for the use of such material, given that it is obtained by tracking communications channels, the NSA will have to obtain court permission, ” – the newspaper writes.
Human rights defenders and other opponents of the total surveillance system concerned that technical improvement which constantly goes to the NSA, can seriously undermine the right of Americans to privacy protection.
Meanwhile, similar technologies in the USA are used not only NSA. The FBI is developing the so-called “new identifier generation, “which will combine fingerprints into a single database, other biometric data and photographs of citizens – including, with driver’s license. However, the NSA experience is unique in terms of use of mass communications.
“We won’t be able to do our work if we don’t look for ways continuous improvement of the accuracy of reconnaissance operations – in order to counteracting foreign intelligence efforts to hide their activities and ultimately harm the United States and their allies, “the newspaper quoted the NSA spokesman as Vani M. Vines (Vanee M. Vines).
The spokeswoman also added that the NSA does not have access to photographs of citizens in state databases – in institutions issuance of passports and driver’s licenses, reports The New York Times.
The newspaper writes that the NSA most widely uses the program under called Wellspring – it brings out those messages in electronic mail that can hold back photos and passport details. For facial recognition software is applied, developed by a small company PittPat, which is owned by Google Corporation.
USA
