Maine voters double down on facial recognition ban in win for privacy

Residents of Portland, Maine, can now officially sue the bastards.

In a robust show of doubling down on privacy protections, voters in the Maine city passed a measure Tuesday replacing and strengthening an existing ban on city official's use of facial recognition technology. While city employees were already prohibited from using the controversial tech, this new ban also gives residents the right to sue the city for violations and specifies monetary fines the city would have to pay out.

Oh yeah, and for some icing on the cake: Under the new law, city officials that violate the ban can be fired. What's more, if a person discovers that "any person or entity acting on behalf of the City of Portland, including any officer, employee, agent, contractor, subcontractor, or vendor" used facial recognition on them, that person is entitled to no less than $100 per violation or $1,000 (whichever is greater).

In other words, if the city violates your right to not be wrapped up in a shady facial recognition database, you get paid.

According to early elections results, the act passed with just over 64 percent of the vote. The ban will go into effect "30 days after the final canvases are returned."   

This updated ban follows partial or complete facial recognition bans in Portland (Oregon), Boston, Somerville (Massachusetts), and San Francisco.

"With this vote, Portland said yes to government accountability," reads a statement from the ACLU of Maine. "Now, Portland residents will be able to sue the city if its employees violate the face surveillance ban."

The ACLU of Maine also highlighted a key aspect of the new ban. Specifically, evidence gathered through facial recognition tech is now inadmissible in court.

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That point is not an abstract one. Just this week we learned that police used facial recognition to find and arrest a Black Lives Matter protester in Washington, D.C. And police in Detroit, Michigan, have arrested at least two innocent men based on facial recognition data.

SEE ALSO: People are fighting algorithms for a more just and equitable future. You can, too.

By prescribing specific financial penalties, this measure gives much-needed teeth to an important privacy and civil liberties reform. Let's hope other cities follow suit.

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