The Pulse: Feb. 7, 2022

Here's what you need to know about Edmonton today.

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Essentials

  • 5°C: A mix of sun and cloud. Clearing near noon. Wind becoming west 30 km/h gusting to 50 in the morning. High plus 5. UV index 1 or low. (forecast)
  • 1,584: There were 1,584 patients in hospital with COVID-19 as of Feb. 4, including 118 patients in ICU. Alberta also reported 26 new deaths. (details)

The Edmonton Police Service's downtown headquarters in 2017

Questions raised about police use of facial recognition software


By Karen Unland

A year after privacy commissioners raised the alarm about police use of Clearview AI's facial recognition technology, the Edmonton Police Service announced plans to use a different company's software to identify suspects by comparing still images of their faces to mugshots found in police databases in Edmonton and Calgary.

The EPS said on Feb. 1 that it has procured NeoFace Reveal, which is facial recognition software produced by NEC Corporation of America. It has been used by the Calgary Police Service since 2014.

Episode 165 of Speaking Municipally, Taproot's civic affairs podcast, raised some questions about police use of the technology. Co-host Mack Male cited a 2021 report from the Public Good Initiative at the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy for the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, noting the risk that such technologies could amplify inequities within the system:

"In comparison (to) ClearviewAI, the NeoFace Reveal system was used to compare images to a mugshot database rather than a database scraped from the internet," the report says. "While this addresses some privacy concerns as the systems are used on lawfully obtained photos, there remains concerns about the use of the facial recognition technology as grounds for arrest or harassment, and about the nature of mugshot databases, grounded in over-policing of racialized minorities."

The podcast also cited a 2018 report from Big Brother Watch, which found through more than 50 freedom-of-information requests in the U.K. regarding a related NEC product called NeoFace Watch that "the overwhelming majority of the police's 'matches' using automated facial recognition to date have been inaccurate. On average, a staggering 95% of 'matches' wrongly identified innocent people."

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Headlines


By Mack Male and Doug Johnson

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City councillors at their first meeting

Coming up at council: Feb. 7-11, 2022


By Emily Rendell-Watson

City council meets on Feb. 7, with a continuation on Feb. 9. Council services committee and city council public hearing are on Feb. 8. Here are some of the key items scheduled to be considered:

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A dog and walker pass through the gate to the Chinese garden at Louise McKinney Riverfront Park on a winter day

Coming up this week: Feb. 7-11, 2022


By Karen Unland

This week, writers and artists talk about their work; virtual conventions explore solar energy and music in Alberta; a free workshop helps businesses improve their email marketing.

Photo: Passing through the gate to the Chinese garden at Louise McKinney Riverfront Park. (Vito Loconte/Instagram)

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