Ukraine is using facial recognition software from Clearview AI to track down Russian assailants and identify Ukrainians who have perished in the conflict.
Hoan Ton-That, the company’s CEO, told Reuters that Ukraine’s defence ministry started using the software on Saturday.
Clearview The facial recognition system developed by AI is divisive, but undeniably powerful, as it uses billions of images scraped from the internet to identify just about anyone. Clearview, according to Ton-That, has over two billion iumages from Russian social media service VKontakte alone.
According to Reuters, Ton-That wrote to Ukrainian authorities, offering Clearview AI’s assistance. The software, according to the letter, could aid in the detection of undercover Russian operatives, the reunification of refugees with their families, and the debunking of misinformation.
Even where there is facial damage or decomposition, Clearview AI’s software is said to be effective.
Ukraine is reportedly using the facial recognition software for free now, but Russia has not received the same offer.
Russia has received widespread condemnation for its illegal invasion and increasingly brutal tactics, which are being investigated as possible war crimes. The Russian military has attacked not only Ukrainian military personnel, but also civilians and humanitarian corridors set up to assist people fleeing the conflict.
As a result, many private companies have decided to halt or limit their operations in Russia, while others are assisting Ukraine in areas such as cybersecurity and satellite internet access.
Clearview AI’s assistance could help a company that is accustomed to receiving negative press.
Apart from its dystopian and intrusive use of mass data scraped from the internet, the company may have some far-right ties.
Clearview AI lawyer Tor Ekeland once argued, “Common law has never recognised a right to privacy for your face.” It’s worth noting that Ekeland earned the moniker “The Troll’s Lawyer” after successfully defending clients such as self-described neo-Nazi troll Andrew Auernheimer.
Clearview AI has come under increasing scrutiny from regulators around the world.
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) of the United Kingdom imposed a potential fine of just over £17 million on Clearview AI in November 2021, ordering the company to destroy all personal data it holds on British citizens and cease further processing.
The OAIC, like the ICO, came to the same conclusion and ordered Clearview AI to destroy the biometric data it had collected on Australians and stop collecting it.
