Locked Out of the Sky by a Broken Algorithm
A single unhandled database error can now ground you at the boarding gate. When federal algorithms replace human judgment, a typo becomes a warrant.
The Brief
The Ghost in the Custom Screening Machine
Source: eff.org
By the numbers
A syntax error in a federal database shouldn't turn a free citizen into a suspect.
What happens next: Expect a coalition of digital rights groups, led by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, to file a freedom of information lawsuit by late July demanding the full disclosure of error rates in DHS's automated targeting systems.
Watchlist
- Automated Transit Screening: Federal agencies are accelerating custom-built profiling tools at major transit hubs.
- Proprietary Code Risks: Unsupervised software code threatens to strip citizens of travel rights without warning.
- Legal Challenges Mounted: Civil liberties groups prepare lawsuits demanding manual override protocols for automated systems.
More headlines
- IRS Expands Automated Audit SelectionEconomic
The Internal Revenue Service launched a new phase of its "custom compliance" initiative, using machine-learning models to automatically flag middle-class taxpayers for audits.
Crow's Nest By replacing human auditors with automated profiling algorithms, the IRS is turning tax collection into a game of guilty-until-proven-innocent.
- Local Police Deploy Custom Facial RecognitionPrivacy
Police departments in three major metropolitan areas signed contracts with private vendors to build custom, localized facial recognition databases that scrape public social media feeds.
Crow's Nest Municipal police are bypassing constitutional protections against warrantless tracking under the guise of custom community safety.
- TSA Expands Facial Recognition at Domestic AirportsSurveillance
The Transportation Security Administration expanded its pilot program using digital identity verification and facial recognition technology to screen passengers at domestic checkpoints.
Crow's Nest Turning a voluntary biometric trial into a de facto requirement erodes the fundamental right to travel freely without presenting papers to a machine.