According to the Yomiuri Shimbun, JR East included prisoners released from prison and those released on parole in the detection targets of the facial recognition cameras installed in the station premises. It is said that it was canceled after receiving the Yomiuri Shimbun's indication that it might be connected. JR East's detection system is a mechanism that automatically matches the face information of people captured by cameras with the face information of people registered in the database.
A detection system based on facial recognition software attempts to predict future crimes, leading to a paradigm shift from crisis management to risk management. Coming from a shift.
See here for the difference between crisis management and risk management.
However, "prediction" and "prediction" of crime are different things. "Prediction" requires scientific basis, but "prediction" does not require scientific explanation. For example, crime prediction depicted in Steven Spielberg's movie "Minority Report" (based on a short story by Philip Dick) was performed not by scientists but by mutants.
However, there are some predictions based on science. An example of this is earthquake prediction. In this case, the difference from the prediction is only a difference in probability. Prediction is determined to occur with absolute certainty. Prediction, on the other hand, assumes that something will happen (likely to happen) with a high probability. In short, there is a big difference in meaning between knowing in advance and measuring in advance, even when there is a scientific basis for it.
Certainly, in order to be a "security camera" in the true sense, it must be possible to predict and deal with crimes immediately before they occur. Otherwise, security cameras are nothing more than "investigative cameras" that are active after an incident occurs.
However, the problem is how to predict crime and how to measure risk.
JR East's detection system was trying to use the face database of prisoners as a ruler. This could lead to human rights problems. At the very least, the informed consent of the prisoner would be required.
In Afghanistan, the Taliban in power have confiscated a database of faces of US military collaborators. Privacy must be treated with caution.
On the other hand, a detection system that does not require a database of faces of prisoners is software called "Defender X." It attempts to predict crime by detecting the physiological "tremors" that occur when approaching to commit a crime. In other words, the physiological response of criminal plotters is used as a "yardstick".
When people are tense, their hands shake and their voices shake even if they don't want to move. Even when the raised hand appears stationary, it may tremble subtly. Temporary tremors due to physical and mental stress also appear on the skin of the face. "Defender X" is designed to analyze the microvibrations of such facial skin and measure the person's current tension level.
The software is physiologically similar in principle to polygraphs (commonly known as "lie detectors") and Doppler sensors (radio sensors) that can detect heartbeats and breathing at a distance. The image is similar to the world of the anime "PSYCHO-PASS".
"Defender X" works just by installing it on an already installed security camera, but even if "Defender X" detects a person who is in a state of intense tension, it is unclear why they are nervous. , this software does not know.
Therefore, the detected person cannot be regarded as a potential criminal. In the end, it is necessary to position them as "people to talk to" who need help here and now. In that respect, if you install it at the station, you may be able to help people who are trying to commit suicide.
Crime prevention and human rights, safety and freedom are sometimes inevitably in a trade-off relationship. Still, as compatible as possible, I would like to note that "theory without practice is powerless, and practice without theory is violence."