BLM. Portland Bans Public + Private Facial Recognition Software

Where: Portland, OR

What: City Council passed an ordinance, the 1st in the nation, to ban both the public and private use of facial recognition software in public accommodations

How is Portland’s ban on facial recognition software different than those in Boston, San Francisco and Oakland, CA? Portland bans private entities from using the software in public accomodation

The exceptions to the ban? Face ID to open your own mobile phone

What 3 reasons did elected officials offer to support the ban?

• gender inaccuracies
• racial bias and inaccuracies
• intrusion on Portlanders’ privacy

How have software companies pivoted?  Amazon, IBM and Microsoft have scaled back their sales of the software to law enforcement

The Hill | Portland adopts landmark facial recognition ordinances