S.T.O.P. Welcomes MTA Facial Recognition Ban For Fare Enforcement

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For Immediate Release S.T.O.P. Welcomes MTA Facial Recognition Ban For Fare Enforcement  (New York, NY 4/29/24) – Today, the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project (S.T.O.P.), a New York-based privacy and civil rights group, welcomes a provision of New York State’s recently passed budget banning the MTA from using facial recognition for fare enforcement. The civil rights group called this a major win for its Ban The Scan coalition, renewing the coalition’s call for a full ban on facial recognition in policing, housing, and public accommodations.  SEE: Gothamist - MTA banned from using facial recognition to enforce fare evasion https://gothamist.com/news/mta-banned-from-using-facial-recognition-to-enforce-fare-evasion Ban The Scan https://www.banthescan.org/ “This is a huge win to ban the scan in New York City,” said Surveillance Technology Oversight Project Communications Director Will Owen. “But New York State must go further in protecting transit riders from facial recognition. This ban does not account for the other biased software MTA has rolled out to enforce fare payment, including artificial intelligence, let alone Hochul’s increasing militarization of the subway. New York State must pass legislation to fully outlaw use of facial recognition and other biometric surveillance to truly protect New Yorkers.” Last year, S.T.O.P. revealed the MTA contracts with the artificial intelligence surveillance firm Awaait to monitor subway fare evasion. The previously unreported contract, which S.T.O.P. obtained under New York’s Freedom of Information Law, uses the MTA’s sprawling network of cameras and Awaait’s AI software to measure alleged fare evasion across the transit system. SEE: Press Release - S.T.O.P. Reveals MTA AI Surveillance Contract https://www.stopspying.org/latest-news/2023/7/20/stop-reveals-mta-ai-surveillance-contract S.T.O.P. - MTA AI Surveillance Contracts Obtained By STOP https://www.stopspying.org/latest-news/2023/7/20/mta-ai-surveillance-contracts-obtained-by-stop Last month, S.T.O.P. condemned Mayor Eric Adams for proposing deployment of the scandal-plagued gun technology vendor Evolv in the New York City Subway. Several weeks prior, the civil rights group condemned Governor Hochul’s plan to deploy National Guard soldiers and New York State Police officers to check bags and patrol platforms on the New York City subway, describing the effort as a misguided attempt to militarize the MTA. Press Release - S.T.O.P. Condemns Adams For Proposing Scandal-Plagued Gun Tech Vendor In Subway https://www.stopspying.org/latest-news/2024/3/28/stop-condemns-adams-for-proposing-scandal-plagued-gun-tech-vendor-in-subway Press Release - S.T.O.P. Condemns Hochul’s National Guard Subway Plan As ‘Abbott-like Stunt To Militarize The MTA’ https://www.stopspying.org/latest-news/2024/3/6/stop-condemns-hochuls-national-guard-subway-plan-as-abbott-like-stunt-to-militarize-the-mta The Surveillance Technology Oversight Project is a non-profit advocacy organization and legal services provider. S.T.O.P. litigates and advocates for privacy, fighting excessive local and state-level surveillance. Our work highlights the discriminatory impact of surveillance on Muslim Americans, immigrants, and communities of color. --END-- CONTACT: S.T.O.P. Executive Director Albert Fox Cahn. Copyright © 2021 Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, All rights reserved.