7 ms·

They already have this at Gatwick, there's security gates/turnstiles where the system doesn't let you pass until it's scanned your face and associated it with y

by zkms 9y ago

They already have this at Gatwick, there's security gates/turnstiles where the system doesn't let you pass until it's scanned your face and associated it with your boarding pass, and IIRC they scanned faces again right before boarding. There's also cameras scattered throughout the airport which have spinning/swirly LED rings around the lens (which look like this: https://www.hrsid.com/assets/images/art/proven-passenger-queue-measurement.gif https://www.hrsid.com/assets/images/art/proven-passenger-que...) -- meant to trick you into involuntarily looking at the cameras. It's flagrantly and unashamedly dystopian.

lucaspiller 9y ago
Might as well just link directly to the manufacturer as these ‘features’ are the selling point of this hardware: http://www.hrsid.com/product-mflow http://www.hrsid.com/product-mflow
dzhiurgis 9y ago
I'd argue the spinner is a nice addition, explicitly reminding people are being filmed and to stop them from doing stupid shit while entering the country.
- ionised 9y ago
  Stupid shit like what?
  - avs733 9y ago
    wanting to enter that type of country
  - dzhiurgis 9y ago
    Like pranking your bro’s about bombs and drugs you are bringing because you’ve binge drunk for last 15 hours while locked up in ergonomically impossible position. Honestly, the ‘forces you to look into camera with a straight face’ is awful idea. Many countries already have cams to scan you when talking with immigration officer.
0x62 9y ago
When arriving, if you have an EU passport you don't even need to go through human immigration/customs. They have a turnstile which scans your passport, then a camera which compares it to your face before letting you through.
- staticelf 9y ago
  Which is absolutely awesome since it goes very fast to go through the checks.
mseebach 9y ago
I get the dystopian flavour of surveillance in general society -- but I don't really get why it's specifically dystopian that you are recorded by a camera while you stand in line to hand over your government issued photo ID to a government agent with pretty broad discretion to make your day pretty awful. I'm pretty sure those cameras at Gatwick are supposed to track how long the waiting time is, not to "surveil" you in any meaningful sense.
- StavrosK 9y ago
  > I'm pretty sure those cameras at Gatwick are supposed to track how long the waiting time is Then they did a really good job of making me feel like I'm in the opening scene of Half Life 2.
- frostwhale 9y ago
  While I agree in general, airports are a bit different. Reading the title of this article I thought, "Good". It's their job to surveil and monitor the airport to the best of technology and law. It is our job to regulate what big brother can and can't do. While security is ridiculously dystopian and over the top, the climate of our world has forced this in airports, so of course they're going to be using all the tech possible. We just need to set the rules for this tech.
  - zkms 9y ago
    > It's their job to surveil and monitor the airport to the best of technology and law. It is our job to regulate what big brother can and can't do. While security is ridiculously dystopian and over the top, the climate of our world has forced this in airports, so of course they're going to be using all the tech possible. I strongly concur that civil aviation needs to be protected from malfeasance. However, all this fancy iris/face-tracking machinery is only useful for, well, tracking and identifying people and doesn't do anything to prevent people from artfully concealing explosives through security checkpoints. Furthermore, it's possible to hide on-body contraband from full-body imaging devices: https://www.usenix.org/system/files/conference/usenixsecurity14/sec14-paper-mowery.pdf https://www.usenix.org/system/files/conference/usenixsecurit... Afaict, there's too much development/use of methodology that has secondary uses for mass surveillance (and isn't even good at detecting explosives), and not enough focus on detecting energetic materials. Large-scale automated iris/face detection on noncooperative human targets is a dangerous tool in the wrong hands and it is frankly disingenuous to develop it (and make its use socially-acceptable) in the name of improving civil aviation security.
AJRF 9y ago
Those immigration turnstiles at gatwick are terrifying. I went through it recently and the person beside me put their passport in the wrong way (they put the wrong page in) and an alarm blared out, everyones turnstile locked and armed guards came over to the person only to tell them to put the page in the right way.
- mortenjorck 9y ago
  Now that is dystopian.
  - sitkack 9y ago
    Where is this Heinlein theme park?
- hammock 9y ago
  Yes, they have these in Shanghai as well and I about shit my pants. When your face lines up correctly, even accidentally, it automatically takes the photo without warning with a loud noise and flashes a big smiley face. It struck me as having an extremely dystopian vibe.
lumberjack 9y ago
The UK have gone bonkers with mass surveillance. Yesterday, I stumbled upon a TV series called "Motorway Cops". The whole point of the series was to showcase all the neat mass surveillance gadgets that even low level police officers have access too.
- otakucode 9y ago
  And they will continue to be baffled as to why violent crime continues to rise in incidence and severity. The fact there has never been a peaceful, stable, happy police state in history doesn't seem to be a hint to frightfully many people.

by zkms 9y ago

lucaspiller 9y ago

Might as well just link directly to the manufacturer as these ‘features’ are the selling point of this hardware: http://www.hrsid.com/product-mflow http://www.hrsid.com/product-mflow

dzhiurgis 9y ago

I'd argue the spinner is a nice addition, explicitly reminding people are being filmed and to stop them from doing stupid shit while entering the country.

ionised 9y ago
Stupid shit like what?
- avs733 9y ago
  wanting to enter that type of country
- dzhiurgis 9y ago
  Like pranking your bro’s about bombs and drugs you are bringing because you’ve binge drunk for last 15 hours while locked up in ergonomically impossible position. Honestly, the ‘forces you to look into camera with a straight face’ is awful idea. Many countries already have cams to scan you when talking with immigration officer.

0x62 9y ago

When arriving, if you have an EU passport you don't even need to go through human immigration/customs. They have a turnstile which scans your passport, then a camera which compares it to your face before letting you through.

staticelf 9y ago
Which is absolutely awesome since it goes very fast to go through the checks.

mseebach 9y ago

I get the dystopian flavour of surveillance in general society -- but I don't really get why it's specifically dystopian that you are recorded by a camera while you stand in line to hand over your government issued photo ID to a government agent with pretty broad discretion to make your day pretty awful. I'm pretty sure those cameras at Gatwick are supposed to track how long the waiting time is, not to "surveil" you in any meaningful sense.

StavrosK 9y ago
> I'm pretty sure those cameras at Gatwick are supposed to track how long the waiting time is Then they did a really good job of making me feel like I'm in the opening scene of Half Life 2.
frostwhale 9y ago
While I agree in general, airports are a bit different. Reading the title of this article I thought, "Good". It's their job to surveil and monitor the airport to the best of technology and law. It is our job to regulate what big brother can and can't do. While security is ridiculously dystopian and over the top, the climate of our world has forced this in airports, so of course they're going to be using all the tech possible. We just need to set the rules for this tech.
- zkms 9y ago
  > It's their job to surveil and monitor the airport to the best of technology and law. It is our job to regulate what big brother can and can't do. While security is ridiculously dystopian and over the top, the climate of our world has forced this in airports, so of course they're going to be using all the tech possible. I strongly concur that civil aviation needs to be protected from malfeasance. However, all this fancy iris/face-tracking machinery is only useful for, well, tracking and identifying people and doesn't do anything to prevent people from artfully concealing explosives through security checkpoints. Furthermore, it's possible to hide on-body contraband from full-body imaging devices: https://www.usenix.org/system/files/conference/usenixsecurity14/sec14-paper-mowery.pdf https://www.usenix.org/system/files/conference/usenixsecurit... Afaict, there's too much development/use of methodology that has secondary uses for mass surveillance (and isn't even good at detecting explosives), and not enough focus on detecting energetic materials. Large-scale automated iris/face detection on noncooperative human targets is a dangerous tool in the wrong hands and it is frankly disingenuous to develop it (and make its use socially-acceptable) in the name of improving civil aviation security.

AJRF 9y ago

Those immigration turnstiles at gatwick are terrifying. I went through it recently and the person beside me put their passport in the wrong way (they put the wrong page in) and an alarm blared out, everyones turnstile locked and armed guards came over to the person only to tell them to put the page in the right way.

mortenjorck 9y ago
Now that is dystopian.
- sitkack 9y ago
  Where is this Heinlein theme park?
hammock 9y ago
Yes, they have these in Shanghai as well and I about shit my pants. When your face lines up correctly, even accidentally, it automatically takes the photo without warning with a loud noise and flashes a big smiley face. It struck me as having an extremely dystopian vibe.

lumberjack 9y ago

The UK have gone bonkers with mass surveillance. Yesterday, I stumbled upon a TV series called "Motorway Cops". The whole point of the series was to showcase all the neat mass surveillance gadgets that even low level police officers have access too.

otakucode 9y ago
And they will continue to be baffled as to why violent crime continues to rise in incidence and severity. The fact there has never been a peaceful, stable, happy police state in history doesn't seem to be a hint to frightfully many people.