Gambling company Tabcorp has recently completed an eight-week trial into using biometric facial recognition technology to identify the ages of those attending three Melbourne venues. The software appeared to work well. As a result, throughout 2020, 400 TAB agencies will see the rollout of the artificial intelligence software. Are people ready for greater biometric facial recognition monitoring in this industry?
New Zealand and Macau are already reporting positive results from such software, with the technology being showcased at the ICE London convention. It may, then, see an uptake in the UK. There are some successful biometric facial recognition scanners in other industries, including airports, social media and smartphones. But, there is a difference between choosing to use the facial recognition and having it forced upon us.
Of course, many have raised concerns with the biometric facial recognition technology, especially when it comes to civil liberties and rights to privacy. Some baulk at the idea of governments and companies that have already been proven to have a bad track record with our sensitive data having so much access to not only our information, but our appearance. An app, FaceApp, launched in 2019 as a series of online challenges where people would have their photo taken by the app to be shown what they might look like as older people or the opposite sex. It was then found out that the Russian-owned app may be less sensitive with the data than users might have expected.
Tabcorp Executive General Manager of Wagering Andy Wright claimed that he was concerned people may be put off from using the venues but suggested that people were used to cameras monitoring them almost everywhere, so this shouldn’t be the case. For those who might be put off by the biometric technology, there are other ways to enjoy casino without potentially having to have your face scanned. Online casinos, such as the ones provided through Vegasslotsonline.com provide a large ranges of games that don’t require you to subject your face to biometric recognition, yet still offer the same level of tension and gameplay in slots, poker and blackjack that you might get at a land-based venue.
Biometric facial recognition could be a game-changer, as long as those who hold our data and likeness do so with increased security. People would be willing to trust these companies, but they would need to prove themselves first. Breaches – such as with Facebook – have made people suspicious of anyone wanting their data. The relatively recent introduction of the GDPR regulations was intended to combat such breaches and therefore allay the fears of data subjects, however, the full extent of this added protection is arguably yet to be seen.
The future is definitely leaning towards artificial intelligence and ways in which it can speed up our lives. For instance, a cruise ship reported that people were able to alight the ship faster through the use of facial recognition, which helped remedy one of the negative aspects of the industry. When done right, it works well. But, some people are still concerned as to what might happen to their data, especially depending on whose hands it falls into.
