Report Hints At Privacy Problem of Drones That Can Recognize Faces 107
New submitter inotrollyou writes "Drones are getting more sophisticated, and will soon carry 'soft' biometrics and facial recognition software. In other news, sales of hats, tinfoil, and laser pointers go up 150%. Obviously there are major privacy concerns and not everyone is down for this." It's not just drones, either: In my old neighborhood in Philadelphia the Orwellian police cameras were everywhere, and they're being touted as a solution for crime in my Texas neighborhood, too. The report itself is more predictive than proscriptive; under U.S. law, as the Register points out, you can expect less legal as well as practical privacy protection the further you are on the continuum between home and public space.
Re:Before anyone says 'Do nothing wrong ...." (Score:5, Informative)
And the reason why everyone isn't arrested is because the police couldn't give two fucks about what you're doing as long as it isn't bothering anyone else or quite obviously dangerous.
Again, if you actually read the post, the reason my hypothetical person was targeted was not because he committed a crime, but because he filmed police doing something that was embarassing to the police and possible illegal. And given that police around the country have been caught harassing people for filming them committing crimes, to think that they would react that way is not a paranoid delusion, it's realistic.