June 10, 2020
Amazon ends police use of its facial recognition software, for now
Amazon today (June 10) said it will suspend the use of its facial recognition software by United States police departments for one year.
The e-commerce giant has been one of the most vocal advocate for the use of the software but today said it will implement the moratorium as debate continues on the controversial technology.
In a blog post, Amazon said
“We’ve advocated that governments should put in place stronger regulations to
govern the ethical use of facial recognition technology, and in recent days,
Congress appears ready to take on this challenge.”
“We hope this one-year moratorium might give Congress
enough time to implement appropriate rules, and we stand ready to help if
requested,” it said in the brief statement.
