Clearview AI's Facial Recognition Technology Faces Backlash in Europe

Privacy groups across Europe have filed complaints against Clearview AI for allegedly violating privacy laws by scraping billions of images from social media platforms, including Facebook. Organizations such as Privacy International have taken legal action in Austria, France, Greece, Italy, and the UK, emphasizing that Clearview's practices are "incredibly invasive and dangerous." Ioannis Kouvakas from Privacy International stated that "extracting our unique facial features or sharing them with law enforcement and other companies exceeds what we expect as online users."

Clearview AI has sparked significant controversy since its inception. The company maintains an extensive database of faces sourced from social media and utilizes artificial intelligence to match these images with those from security cameras and other sources. This enables law enforcement to extract extensive personal information if an individual is captured on camera in public, effectively undermining personal privacy.

Despite the technology operating in a legal gray area, thousands of public law enforcement agencies have adopted Clearview's services. Authorities in the UK and Australia initiated a joint investigation into the company, and the US Senate recently introduced legislation aimed at prohibiting government agencies from purchasing Clearview's data. Major platforms like Twitter, Google, and YouTube have issued cease-and-desist letters to Clearview AI, alleging violations of their terms of service.

The European Union has previously raised concerns about facial recognition technology like that used by Clearview AI. Last year, the company claimed its "image-search technology is not currently available" in Europe. However, Privacy International warns that users’ faces could be stored indefinitely in Clearview's database, potentially accessible by numerous individuals and linked to extensive online information about them.