Anti-Surveillance Mask Lets You Pass As Someone Else

SonicSpike (242293) points out this article about a mask that can foil surveillance cameras and provide fuel for nightmares. "If the world starts looking like a scene from Matrix 3 where everyone has Agent Smith's face, you can thank Leo Selvaggio. His rubber mask aimed at foiling surveillance cameras features his visage, and if he has his way, plenty of people will be sporting the Personal Surveillance Identity Prosthetic in public. It's one of three products made by the Chicago-based artist's URME Surveillance, a venture dedicated to 'protecting the public from surveillance and creating a safe space to explore our digital identities.' 'Our world is becoming increasingly surveilled. For example, Chicago has over 25,000 cameras networked to a single facial recognition hub,' reads the URME (pronounced U R Me) site. 'We don't believe you should be tracked just because you want to walk outside and you shouldn't have to hide either. Instead, use one of our products to present an alternative identity when in public.'"

Comments

Sure, give that a try

[mlookaba]

Wearing a mask in public is already considered "probable cause" for detain and search. While I agree with the reasons, this product will go nowhere except Halloween parties.

Re:Sure, give that a try

[BilI_the_Engineer]

Isn't it funny (or sad) how the government is increasingly using mass surveillance in public places, and yet when you attempt to thwart their efforts at tracking you by doing something as simple as wearing a mask, it's illegal?

The "land of the free and the home of the brave" has many places that ban the act of wearing masks in public places. Free? Brave? To drones, maybe.

Re:Sure, give that a try

[RNLockwood]

California has had a mask law on the books long before photo recognition, CCTV, etc. The purpose was to attempt to prevent masked people on the streets as this was (reasonably IMHO) seen as a probable precursor to some sort of in-your-face crime.

Re:Sure, give that a try

[cold fjord]

...something as simple as wearing a mask, it's illegal?

You can thank the Klan for that in many places. Are you in favor of rolling back the anti-Klan laws?

The "land of the free and the home of the brave" has many places that ban the act of wearing masks in public places. Free? Brave? To drones, maybe.

Blacks, Jews, and Catholics do live more freely since few in the Klan were brave enough to make their allegiance known openly and commit their foul deeds without anonymity. Do you resent that? Do you think that America is less free or brave because the Klan finds it more difficult to hide itself to harass or kill blacks, Jews, and Catholics?

Re:Sure, give that a try

[BilI_the_Engineer]

California has had a mask law on the books long before photo recognition, CCTV, etc.

When the laws were created is irrelevant to the reality that protecting your privacy is made impossible in many places by government thugs.

reasonably IMHO

Again?

Come on. I shouldn't have to tell people in "the land of the free" that banning things like this merely because criminals could abuse them is disgusting. Even if the safety is real, it's not something any truly free country would do, just like we shouldn't have the TSA, the NSA mass surveillance, or any of the other nonsense that's happening right now.

What's with all these people who claim to want a free country, and yet support policies that take us in the opposite direction? It's just an eyesore.

Re:Sure, give that a try

[Baloroth]

When the laws were created is irrelevant to the reality that protecting your privacy is made impossible in many places by government thugs.

Wearing masks in public is not a protection of your privacy: you're in *public*: everyone can see you, and what you are doing. That's part of the whole concept of a public place. No, wearing masks preserves *anonymity*, which is different from privacy. As is, you have and should have limited rights to privacy in public (can't force people not to look at you, for example). You have no right whatsoever to anonymity in public.

Re:Sure, give that a try

[BilI_the_Engineer]

Actually, it provides privacy from mass public surveillance. There are different kinds of privacy, and some (i.e. privacy from having people take upskirt pictures) exist even in public places.

And this is about the government, not random people looking at you.

You have no right whatsoever to anonymity in public.

Anyone who tries to say I shouldn't is an authoritarian scumbag.

This is supposed to be "the land of the free and the home of the brave," so you can damn well bet I'm going to claim such a right.

Re:Sure, give that a try

[Anonymous Coward]

California has had a mask law on the books long before photo recognition, CCTV, etc

Go read the law. (emphasis added)

CALIFORNIA Penal Code Section 182-185
185. Section One Hundred and Eighty-five. It shall be unlawful for any person to wear any mask, false whiskers, or any personal disguise (whether complete or partial) for the purpose of: One--Evading or escaping discovery, recognition, or identification in the commission of any public offense. Two--Concealment, flight, or escape, when charged with, arrested for, or convicted of, any public offense. Any person violating any of the provisions of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor.

So provided you're not committing a crime while wearing a mask, or using the mask to evade arrest, it's perfectly legal.

Re:Sure, give that a try

[blindseer]

Are you in favor of rolling back the anti-Klan laws?

Yes. So long as it also means rolling back the anti-self defense laws.

The KKK got away with what they did by first disarming their victims. Those laws come primarily from the Jim Crow era, an effort to keep Blacks effectively slaves. An armed Black man did not have to be concerned about hooded characters invading his property, because they'd be dead and the hood removed in short order.

I don't care if people wish to wear masks so long as I'm not disarmed. If the masked people don't want to get shot then don't go busting down my door. Masked people in a shopping mall, making every purchase with cash, I have no problem with that. If it doesn't pick my pocket or break my leg it bothers me none.

Disarming and unmasking people puts the government in a very powerful position. I have the right to associate as I please without the government knowing. I have the right to defend myself as I see fit. The government need not know what weapons I own. If the government fears me because I am anonymous and armed then perhaps it is because the government is doing something they should not.

This is supposed to be a government of the people, for the people. We should be partners, not adversaries. That means the government needs to trust the people with being unnamed and armed. If they cannot do that then we have tyranny.

How convenient for him...

[msauve]

If he gets others to wear his face mask, he can go around without one and be hidden in the crowd. He should be paying others to wear these.

Re:Should Be Illegal

[bmo]

They should be banned lest criminals use these.

Criminals use oxygen.

--
BMO

You don't need this mask

[140Mandak262Jamuna]

All you need is make up. These recognition algorithms work by looking at the corners of mouth, centers of eyes and the tip of the nose. You should be able to take a picture of your mortal enemy load it up to Picassa or some such thing. Then use make up to add/subtract edges to your mouths, add a contrast point to the tip of the nose, take a selfie and see of Picassa matches your made up face to your patsy. Adjust it till you fool it. Then you can go commit serious crime in full view of the cameras, and tip off the police and point them to the guy who stole your girlfriend in high school. In security terms, the automatic face recognition systems hash your face to a checksum, but without a salt. Spoofing will be trivial.

Pretty soon contact lenses will be available where you could color part of it white and some part black to change the distance between eye centers. After that the automatic face recognition system for surveillance will get their well deserved death.

Re:You don't need this mask

[PPH]

Even easier, large dark glasses. Cameras can't see your eyes and locate the centers. Or wear a pair of these.

Sunglasses are your best bet, as law enforcement isn't going to be able to use them as probable cause for anything.

Re:You don't need this mask

[denzacar]

Don't forget your clown shoes, pants and gloves to hide your gait.

Also, a wig might be useful. A bright orange or green one.
You'd be practically invisible in a crowd.

As long as that crowd is at a clown convention. An Apple store might do in a pinch too.
Hey... it worked for Captain America and Black Widow.

Re:How long before ...

[Charliemopps]

How long before wearing one of these makes you a potential terrorist in the eyes of the police, FBI, etc.?

Haven't you heard? We all already are.

Re:Should Be Illegal

[CRCulver]

No person in their right mind would walk around with these things just to not be recorded.

Under underestimate the power of fashion. People walk around "in their right minds" with bits of metal or ink in their skin, or (just to show it's not just those crazy kids today) codpieces or monocles. Who knows what the future may hold, perhaps it will come to be considered stylish to stick it to the surveillance state.

Stopgap measure

[CODiNE]

Welcome to a new cat and mouse game.

With a sufficient number of people successfully using this technique the detection methods will keep getting smarter.

Sizing a person based on the distance between joints.
Solution: elbow and knee extender prosthetics. Strap it on the upper limb and add a few inches before the joint is visible through clothing.

Recognizing a person through their walking styles.
Solution: Joining the ministry of silly walks and becoming and expert at switching gaits by choice.

Heuristics based on tracking bodies and the likelihood of people doing switcheroos while off camera.
At this point you would end up being a high profile target that gets human eyes overseeing your tracking.

Infrared lights can be filtered...
Errr...
Looks like the mouse always loses this one.

Reverse it

[Opportunist]

Don't wear a mask. Get a mask of your face done. And when the feds show up, well, that wasn't me, just someone wearing my mask. I hate that as much as you do, officer, and if I just could stop it, believe me, I would... but people are bad, ya know?

Re:Should Be Illegal

[Noah Haders]

it's a way to protest the surveillance state, and protest is a form of speech. so it's constitutionally protected.

Re:Should Be Illegal

[HiThere]

[sarcasm]
I notice you posted anonymously. Doesn't that seem inconsistent with your views? Or are you currently perpetrating a crime? Or are you only planning one?

Come on, admit it. You're being an Anonymous Coward because you're committing a crime.
[/sarcasm]