Artists including Tom Morello and indie rockers Speedy Ortiz, Amanda Palmer, and more have joined the opposition against Live Nation‘s plans to potentially use facial recognition technology at the venues and events for which the massive concert promoter operates.
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According to reports, Morello and Speedy Ortiz have teamed up with Digital rights advocacy group Fight For The Future in raising awareness for the potential danger and abuse of power that comes with such developed technology. Last spring it was reported that Live Nation and its ticketing platform Ticketmaster suggested they’re looking into the technology that would replace the use of physical tickets with facial recognition software. The news came after it was discovered that Live Nation Entertainment had invested money in Blink Identity, a new commercial facial recognition company that formerly “spent the last decade building and deploying large scale biometric identification systems in the Middle East for the Department of Defense.”
In a message to investors, Live Nation lauded that the tech could be used to “associate your digital ticket with your image.”
Fight For The Future recently shared a rebuttal against Live Nation’s tech security proposal, noting its potential danger in leading to biased monitoring of free peoples for the sake of commerce–not to mention that it’s also creepy as hell.
“Facial recognition surveillance is uniquely dangerous. It doesn’t keep fans or artists safe, it just subjects them to invasive, racially-biased monitoring that will inevitably lead to fans getting harassed, falsely arrested, deported, or worse,” Fight For the Future’s Evan Greer said in a statement. “We’re calling on all artists to stick up for their fans’ basic rights and safety by speaking out against the use of Big Brother-style biometric surveillance at live music events.”
Morello took to Twitter on Monday to also add, “I don’t want Big Brother at my shows targeting fans for harassment, deportation, or arrest. That’s why I’m joining this campaign calling on @Ticketmaster and others not to use #facialrecognition at festivals and concerts.”
Blink Identity claims that it has the ability to correctly identify people in half of a second. If implemented correctly, this would allow event-goers to walk through Blink Identity’s sensors at full speed, with the sensor able to identify and confirm entrance for over 60 people per minute.
Head to the Fight For The Future website to learn more about the opposition to Live Nation’s facial recognition implementation at its event.
[H/T Fader]