Ban Biometric Surveillance - Access Now

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accessnow.org·accessnow.org/campaign/ban-biometric-surveillance/

Relevant to AI governance discussions around deployment restrictions; represents civil society advocacy perspective on limiting harmful AI applications, particularly in surveillance contexts.

Metadata

Importance: 42/100campaign pagehomepage

Summary

Access Now's campaign advocating for a global ban on biometric surveillance technologies, including facial recognition, arguing they pose fundamental threats to privacy, civil liberties, and human rights. The campaign calls on governments and companies to prohibit the use of such systems in public spaces and law enforcement contexts. It frames biometric surveillance as incompatible with democratic freedoms and disproportionately harmful to marginalized communities.

Key Points

•Calls for comprehensive bans on biometric surveillance technologies, especially facial recognition used in public spaces and by law enforcement.
•Argues biometric surveillance enables mass surveillance, chilling effects on free expression, and discrimination against marginalized groups.
•Engages policymakers, civil society, and the public to support legislative and regulatory prohibitions worldwide.
•Highlights that biometric systems are often inaccurate, particularly for people of color, amplifying existing systemic biases.
•Connects AI-enabled surveillance to broader human rights concerns including freedom of assembly and privacy rights.

1 FactBase fact citing this source

Entity	Property	Value	As Of
Access Now	campaign	Led coalition of 110+ civil society organizations in EU AI Act advocacy on transparency safeguards	2024

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