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Privacy watchdog orders Clearview AI to stop collecting, delete images of British Columbians

Commissioner said company refused to comply with results of investigation
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FILE – British Columbia Privacy Commissioner Michael McEvoy speaks during a news conference in Ottawa on April 25, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

B.C. Information and Privacy Commissioner Michael McEvoy has ordered Clearview AI to stop collecting images of British Columbians and to delete those it already has.

The order came down on Tuesday (Dec. 14) from McEvoy’s office and follows “the company’s refusal to comply with recommendations made in the investigation report by the Privacy Commissioner of Canada,” along with their B.C. and Alberta counterparts.

Clearview AI’s technology allows for the collection of huge numbers of images from various sources that can help police forces, financial institutions and other clients identify people.

The ruling requires Clearview AI to, by Jan. 25, 2022, stop offering its facial recognition services that involve the collection and use of images and biometric facial arrays collected from B.C. residents without their consent to clients in the province; to cease the collection, use and disclosure of images and biometric facial arrays collected from individuals in B.C. without their consent; and to delete the images and biometric facial arrays it already has.

– with files from The Canadian Press

READ MORE: Clearview AI broke Canadian privacy laws with facial recognition tool, watchdogs say


@katslepian

katya.slepian@bpdigital.ca

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