LONDON: The UK’s data watchdog fined facial recognition firm Clearview AI £7.5 million ($9.3 million) on Tuesday for unlawfully collecting images of people from social media platforms and the web for use in a global database.
The Information Commissioner’s Office, the UK’s privacy regulator, also told Clearview AI to stop obtaining and using the personal data of UK residents, and to delete their data from its systems.
“The company not only enables identification of those people, but effectively monitors their behavior and offers it as a commercial service,” John Edwards, the information commissioner, said. “That is unacceptable. People expect that their personal information will be respected, regardless of where in the world their data is being used.”
According to the ICO, Clearview AI had gathered people’s private photos from social media and across the web without their knowledge. It subsequently created a database of 20 billion images, committing multiple breaches of data protection laws.
Clearview AI’s services are no longer being offered in the UK.
Previous clients included the Metropolitan police, the National Crime Agency and nationwide police forces. However, the ICO said on Monday that as the firm still had customers abroad, it was still using the data of UK residents.
It also found that the firm had asked for additional personal information, including photos, when asked by members of the public if they were in the database.
“I am deeply disappointed that the UK information commissioner has misinterpreted my technology and intentions,” Hoan Ton-That, the company’s CEO, said.
“My company and I have acted in the best interests of the UK and their people by assisting law enforcement in solving heinous crimes against children, seniors and other victims of unscrupulous acts.
“We collect only public data from the open internet and comply with all standards of privacy and law,” he added.
