By Cecilia Yu
SAN FRANCISCO — As artificial intelligence technology has developed, concerns have grown over the safety and security of its use, particularly its ability to find, memorize and store information about individuals. While some people argue it creates a safer environment, others believe the information could ultimately be stolen or obtained through hacking.
According to a statement from the Bay Area Reporter, many LGBTQ+ bars and clubs have used PatronScan devices to determine whether a person matches the picture on their ID and whether the ID is fake. PatronScan also said that the information its devices scan will be deleted after the data retention period is up — in California, it is 21 days.
During this period, bars and clubs would be allowed to flag a person if they had any sort of bad behavior, and anywhere else that has PatronScan would be able to see this flag, saving them from possible trouble. However, once this 21-day period is over, the flag will no longer be there.
“Bad behavior doesn’t just disappear when someone gets kicked out, and they don’t get to walk into the bar across the road and start over,” PatronScan says.
PatronScan emphasizes the importance of safety and its desire for it for everyone.
However, Evan Greer, who is part of Fight for the Future and is a trans woman, states that “using face scanning devices and AI algorithms to match faces to IDs and then store sensitive information like gender and address for weeks is a massive privacy and safety threat to LGBTQ+ people.”
The LGBTQ+ community has long been a focal point of attacks, as there is a “large target on the LGBTQ+ community especially the trans community,” as stated by Fight for the Future. The idea of any information being stored about LGBTQ+ people puts the whole community on edge, as it could be accessed at any time.
One specific LGBTQ+ bar, The Mix on 18th Street, used to stand firmly behind the use of PatronScan at its bar, as it helped create a safer environment for workers.
The main reasoning behind installing this technology was a previous incident in which an employee was assaulted. A manager of The Mix, Nick Kealy, stated, “Had the system been in place, police could have identified the man immediately.”
The Bay Area Reporter reveals that many bar employees in the Castro area have “expressed safety concerns to the B.A.R. for years, issues that police have said don’t necessarily justify beefed-up night patrols, claiming the data wouldn’t support that.”
The customers of The Mix, however, have vocalized their disagreement with the use of such systems, as they are concerned about their information being leaked.
Kealy responded to these complaints, stating that they “will not be bullied or pressured into compromising their safety. We will not overlook that responsibility to satisfy critics who refuse to engage with the facts, no matter how loud they get.”
Early in the day on Aug. 14, Fight for the Future reported that The Mix made a statement pausing its use of face scanning but “will continue the use of PatronScan to verify IDs.”
This decision to pull back on facial recognition comes after quite a few bars, Bay Area artists and venues have also stated their intention to disable the use of AI surveillance and recognition in their work environments.
Greer commented on the situation: “The reality is surveillance takes its own victims. It’s no secret the federal government has put a large target on the LGBTQ+ community, especially the trans community. To allow for any third-party surveillance of the queer and trans community is simply too dangerous and too risky in this political environment.”
Artists and venues continue to campaign against the use of AI facial scanning in many public areas, while others, such as these 38 establishments, are still continuing to use facial scanners.
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