A New Era: A heated debate over facial recognition technology has ignited a new spark: Manhattan's iconic Madison Square Garden, home of the New York Knicks basketball team, and countless Billy Joel concerts.
The year since the operator of the arena where Joe Frazier defeated Muhammad Ali in the 1971 "Fight of the Century" was criticized for using software to identify and fire multiple attorneys for events held at the venue.
Local lawmakers want to block the move, which activists say represents a serious misuse of the technology and raises concerns about privacy and US surveillance in China.
"When the rich and powerful are free to use facial recognition to track people, everyone is at risk," said Albert Fox Chan, executive director of STOP, a privacy nonprofit.
"Here we see a great example of how subtle a reaction can be," he told AFP.
Last October, Barbara Hart and her husband were approaching their seats at the Garden for a Brandi Carlyle concert to celebrate their wedding anniversary when they were pulled over by security.
She claimed the guards recognized her without seeing her ID and even though the tickets were in her husband's name before escorting the couple out of the hall.
The attorney said the guards used technology to match her face to a photo of her taken from her company's website.
Although not involved in the case, she said her company is the subject of a lawsuit against the company's parent company, MSG Entertainment.
"It was confusing and frustrating. Intimidation with extraordinary weapons," the 62-year-old told AFP.
Hart is one of at least four attorneys recently fired from MSG Entertainment after their offices closed due to litigation with the company.
Kerry Colon told local media that she was denied entry to Radio City Music Hall in November when she attempted to see the Rocket Dancers with her 9-year-old daughter.
Two other attorneys were denied entry to MSG to observe the Knicks and Rangers respectively.
Billionaire businessman James Dolan of MSG Entertainment "has a direct policy of barring attorneys for companies with active litigation against the company from attending events in all countries until the litigation is resolved."
New York Attorney General Leticia James warned Tuesday that the policy could violate states' civil rights laws.
State senators this week proposed filling a loophole in the law that would prohibit the "unlawful refusal" of visitors with valid amusement park tickets.
"Orwellian"
While the proposed reform is welcome for human rights activists, it does not address the core of the problem: increased surveillance in the age of algorithms.
Facial recognition technology is legal in New York. Used by police and airports.
According to the 2020, the state government has temporarily banned its use in schools. Activists like Khan support an outright ban.
The Madison Square Garden example shows that private companies can use facial recognition to "eliminate anyone they want to silence."
MSG has been introducing facial recognition technology since 2018. The facility uses an algorithm to compare camera images to a stored photo database, according to a report in the New York Times this year.
"The facial recognition technology system does not capture images of anyone other than those who have previously been warned to enter our facilities or whose misconduct on our premises has identified them as a security risk," said an MSG spokesman. he told AFP.
Among other things, the United States and the European Union are fighting to regulate the use of biometrics, facial recognition and artificial intelligence.
Proponents say facial recognition improves security, but critics say the flawed technology is a false match and discriminates against ethnic minorities.
Opponents point out how Chinese police recently used it to track down and arrest protesters.
The use of monosodium glutamate "paints an Orwellian picture of our society today," Daniel Schwartz of the New York Civil Liberties Union told AFP. -AFP
