Export Controls Needed on Certain Facial Recognition Software, IBM Says

The Bureau of Industry and Security should impose targeted export controls on specific facial recognition software but take care not to restrict the entire technology category, some of which can be used for benign purposes, IBM said. While some technologies are “clear use-cases that must be off limits” for export, such as artificial intelligence-powered software used for mass surveillance and human rights abuses, other technologies are safe for everyday uses, the company said.

“Broad rules that fail to differentiate between these various applications likely will lead to unintended consequences that can reach far beyond the issues targeted by the original regulation,” IBM said in Sept. 11 comments to BIS. The company was responding to a July BIS notice that asked for feedback on potential license requirements for items that may be used for crowd control reasons and human rights abuses (see 2007160021). The comment period ends Sept. 15.

IBM said BIS should control facial recognition technologies that use “‘1-to-many’ matching end uses.” The company said those technologies are distinct from “1-to-1” facial matching systems used for verification purposes to unlock smartphones or to board an airplane. “1-to-many” systems, however, “attempt to match a face to a database of stored facial templates,” IBM said, and are “most likely to be used for mass surveillance.”

BIS should focus its export controls on “high-resolution” cameras that collect data and the software algorithms that “analyze and match that data in the context of a ‘1-to-many’ facial recognition system,” IBM said. Specifically, BIS should tailor the controls to restrict exports for “certain unacceptable use cases” and for uses by “problematic end users,” the company said.

IBM said BIS may want to consider specific restrictions on countries that “have a history of human rights abuses” that use the “‘1-to-many’ matching functionality,” as well as “specific companies or government agencies.” The agency should also update the Export Administration Regulations country chart “to include those countries that pose the potential for human rights abuses,” IBM said, but did not name specific countries. In its notice, BIS mentioned China, which it said uses facial recognition technology in the Xinjiang region to detain and repress Muslim minority groups.

The restrictions must also be multilateral, IBM said, adding that BIS should propose any controls through the Wassenaar Arrangement. “We believe many [Wassenaar] members will be interested in cooperation on this topic,” IBM said. But if Wassenaar consensus isn't reached, IBM said the U.S. should consider “ad hoc plurilateral arrangements” with like-minded allies.