Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

State Photo-ID Databases Mined By Police

Posted by samzenpus on from the hits-keep-coming dept.

Rick Zeman writes "Showing once again that once a privacy door is opened every law enforcement agency will run through it, The Washington Post details how state drivers license photo databases are being mined by various LEOs in their states--and out. From the article: '[L]aw enforcement use of such facial searches is blurring the traditional boundaries between criminal and non-criminal databases, putting images of people never arrested in what amount to perpetual digital lineups. The most advanced systems allow police to run searches from laptop computers in their patrol cars and offer access to the FBI and other federal authorities. Such open access has caused a backlash in some of the few states where there has been a public debate. As the databases grow larger and increasingly connected across jurisdictional boundaries, critics warn that authorities are developing what amounts to a national identification system — based on the distinct geography of each human face.'"

4 of 205 comments (clear)

  1. That reminds me by paiute · · Score: 4, Funny

    My license renewal is coming up. Time to grow a beard and dye my hair.

    --
    If Slashdot were chemistry it would look like this:Cadaverine
    1. Re:That reminds me by jrmcc · · Score: 4, Funny

      Why not - Amanda Bynes did it...

  2. At least they won't be picking on the "brown man" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Illegal Aliens can't get a drivers license... so they are safe from these photo searches...

  3. Re:vote them out of office by reboot246 · · Score: 3, Funny

    Do you really know what a merkin is?