Canada’s national police force broke privacy law by using controversial facial recognition software that put innocent Canadians in a “24/7 police lineup,” the federal privacy commissioner says.
The RCMP conducted “hundreds” of searches of Clearview AI’s database of billions of photos scraped from the public internet, including social media sites, without consent. The company lets law enforcement and private business then match photos against that database.
It was illegal, according to privacy commissioner Daniel Therrien — both Clearview AI’s collection of images without consent, and the RCMP’s use of that database of unlawfully collected images.
Clearview’s practices amounted to “mass surveillance,” Therrien concluded, and the RCMP’s use of its database broke the Privacy Act.
“The data involved in (facial recognition technology) speaks to the very core of individual identity and as both commercial and government use of the technology expands, it raises important questions about the kind of society we want to live in,” Therrien concluded in his report.
The RCMP initially denied it used Clearview AI, both publicly and to the privacy commissioner, who is an independent officer of Parliament.
After a joint Toronto Star and BuzzFeed News investigation found the Mounties had paid for Clearview’s services, however, the force publicly admitted to using the controversial tools on a limited basis — predominantly for identifying victims of child sexual exploitation.
But Therrien’s office concluded that not only did the RCMP initially “erroneously” say it had not used Clearview, the force “did not satisfactorily account for the vast majority of the searches it made.”
That’s nice.
Now, who gets fired for this?
No one.
Of course no one. Jackbooted thugs are above the law. And when caught red handed they are investigated by other jackbooted thugs who inevitably conclude that jackbooted thugs did nothing wrong.
Indeed.
As usual in Canada it’s the Law that tramples all over the reason for it’s very existence. Consequences for our publicly paid servants for making their ends justify the means is ZILCH. What this should be is book throwing time to get rid of these creatures that apparently have no sense of moral responsibility.
“When the law breaks the law there is no law….only a fight for survival.” Billy Jack.
From the Yahoo article of the same topic:
https://news.yahoo.com/canada-privacy-regulator-says-federal-154357339.html
The RCMP disagreed that the onus was on them to ensure services they used didn’t violate privacy laws, the statement said, arguing that this created an “unreasonable obligation.”
Notice the weasel word “reasonable”. So if the RCMP feels that a law is unreasonable, they can ignore it (which is just what they said)? Abolish the RCMP, arrest and prosecute anyone with knowledge or involvement in the searches. That would sound reasonable to me.
“Reasonable” is a very Legal word. Maybe the most Legal word there is. Reasonable IS NOT for the enforcers to decide. It is for the Courts. There should definitely be charges filed against individual RCMP staff if only to sort that question. Then if the Courts show they’ve turned against Canadians by actually agreeing that the RCMP was right to invade privacy without sufficient reasonable justification the next steps if the Will in Canada is sufficient to restore Freedoms including the Right to Privacy by electing people serious about individual Freedom then wholesale firings of large swaths of the Public Service that intentionally pushed Government operating procedures in inappropriate directions that limited Canadian freedoms should be fired with cause. They should know better and ignorance is no excuse. This is becoming a huge issue – one that will attract a large proportion of the electorate all by itself.
That is the attitude of the entire civil service. Since it writes the laws, it thinks it also gets to interpret them. When a judge disagrees, the law gets retroactively re-written. “That’s not our intent!” is the civil service mantra.
So which Mounties are going to jail?
The RCMP likely didn’t provide disclosure to anyone they charged just as they didn’t provide disclosure to anyone charged with firearms offenses that they illegally maintained and used the long gun registry. The RCMP are a criminal organization and any judge who believes their testimony is a moron.
Judges are just as corrupt as the jackbooted thugs. They know well that thugs routinely break the law and perjure themselves, but as long as no stench is raised about ill treatment of protected minorities they fully support the abuses.
the force publicly admitted to using the controversial tools on a limited basis — predominantly for identifying victims of child sexual exploitation
“Because p3d0ph1les” has been the police’s go-to rationale for demanding extraordinary Internet surveillance powers since the Internet began. They know any resistance can be squelched with “you must be in favour of child molesters”.
Personally, I’d like to know what carries the harsher penalty – violating federal privacy law, or lying to the Commissioner about it when asked.
Why are the RCMP still allowed in Alberta? Is it because Kenney is a spineless commie?
Next election can’t come soon enough.
Some reports say that the number of files on Canadians held by the RCMP number in the Millions.
Here are 420,000 that we know of as of 2005. I imagine THE RCMP/STASI have way more than necessary on many people. They truly are a Rogue Outfit and not to be trusted by anyone.
https://www.therecord.com/news/canada/2014/05/24/names-of-420-000-canadians-are-in-police-database-despite-no-criminal-records.html
“Predominantly”-whatever that means. Why do they need help to identify the victims? Do they know who the perpetrators are but they do not have any/or enough victims, whom they can’t otherwise figure out who they are? Sure. At least lie better than that for what we (are forced to) pay you.
Man oh man! When Pinky No’Tool gets in charge, he’ll put that slime in its place!
^^^ Right on cue, resident jackboot lickers ready to deflect.
Right on cue. Resident cuck rising to the bait.
Yes, every time you fellate cops is because bait. Sure it is.
Please don’t defund them, anything but that.
Jackbooted thugs one and all.