By Joel R. McConvey

Police in Dallas, Texas are getting AI-driven facial recognition technology. Local ABC affiliate WFAA reports that city council has approved the use of Clearview AI's algorithmic 1-n biometric face matching software for law enforcement purposes. The system uses a face-scraping process that sends potential biometric matches found on the internet for review by two human officers.

Like other departments, Dallas police say facial recognition will be a "game-changer" for police investigations, as the force faces staffing shortages. The department says it will establish rules to govern the facial recognition technology's use, and file a progress report in six months.

But critics are concerned that the potential for error is too high, and that innocent people are likely to end up scrutinized or arrested based on false matches. Nate Wessler, deputy director of the ACLU's Speech, Privacy and Technology Project, says the adoption by police "raises really serious questions about what kinds of protections will be in place to show that nobody is wrongfully investigated or arrested because police trust a glitchy algorithm."