Schneier on Security

Clive Robinson • May 7, 2026 9:07 AM

@ Bruce, ALL,

What scares me most is this,

“… with facial recognition tied to various databases.”

Current “Facial recognition” is known to be appalling under even “ideal conditions”…

And the “conditions” are not going to be improved by the small lenses that are likely to be used in these systems in reality[1].

But consider further… One of the things the late Prof Ross J. Anderson used to point out was just how unreliable “database records” were due to “human errors”. With the larger the database the higher the percentage of errors.

Just taking those two worries alone would suggest that such a system would have a very high error rate.

Now add in that it will be “Improved with AI” with management seeking out the likes of Palantir to “cut manpower costs” etc.

The result will be truly scary and add in the fact as we are increasingly seeing in the UK with “authoritarian types” the chosen solution will be to slap “National Security” or similar on it so the very many who will be harmed by it will have no legal path of gaining remediation etc…

[1] Also consider those who would be tasked with walking around with what would look like “a pair of Micky Mouse ears sat at the sides of their face?

Lets be honest dumb as they might reputed to be, the ICE operatives know they will get verbally abused when “making a spectacle” of themselves even “Glasshole” would probably be preferable.