Microsoft doesn't want police forces to use Azure AI for facial recognition

In a significant (but quietly pushed) policy update, Microsoft’s Azure OpenAI service has tightened its control over the use of facial recognition technology by law enforcement agencies worldwide.

Discovered by The registryThe revised Code of Conduct specifically prohibits real-time facial recognition on mobile cameras used by law enforcement agencies worldwide, including body-mounted police cameras and dash cams.

So far, the restrictions have been aimed primarily at state and local police in the USA. However, Microsoft’s recent changes now extend these restrictions to law enforcement agencies worldwide.

Microsoft bans real-time facial recognition from law enforcement agencies

The wording of the policy — specifically, “real-time facial recognition technology on mobile cameras” and “in the wild” — suggests that the company has not banned agencies outside the U.S. from using its cloud service for facial recognition on fixed cameras and in the mail to use incident processing at a police station, but that’s just speculation.

When prompted The registryMicrosoft declined to comment on the reasons for revising the policy. However, military and law enforcement technology company Axon recently announced that it would use GPT-4 to help transcribe audio from body cameras for police reports.

Despite AI’s potential to transform industries and significantly increase efficiency, it has not been without its challenges. For example, artificial intelligence has been shown to be biased in certain circumstances.

Microsoft’s own policy states that the Azure OpenAI service “may not be used to infer sensitive characteristics such as gender, race, or specific age from images or videos of them.”

The policy applies to all OpenAI models hosted on the Service, including the GPT and DALL-E families.

As discussions about the ethical use of AI continue, Microsoft’s updated policies represent a notable step in regulating the use of AI-based facial recognition technology – a testament to the company’s stated commitment to responsible and safe artificial intelligence.

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