Google forbids facial recognition apps on Glass in the name of privacy

[CyberAbc 290]

If you run into a complete stranger wearing Google Glass, that person might take your picture with just a wink. But rest assured that Glass probably won't be able to tell its wearer your name, date of birth, and turn-offs.

In a Google+ post Friday, the Project Glass team noted that "many have expressed both interest and concern around the possibilities of facial recognition in Glass." For now, Google is playing it safe on facial recognition. "As Google has said for several years, we won’t add facial recognition features to our products without having strong privacy protections in place," Google said. "With that in mind, we won’t be approving any facial recognition Glassware at this time."

The company also updated its Google Glass developer policies to reflect the change. "Don't use the camera or microphone to cross-reference and immediately present personal information identifying anyone other than the user, including use cases such as facial recognition and voice print," the document says. "Applications that do this will not be approved at this time."

Moreover, the policy states that the Google Glass display (a light above the eye) must stay on when the device is capturing pictures or videos. This makes it a little less likely that a Glass user could take pictures or video of someone without them realizing it (provided the person being recorded knows that the display light means the camera is active).

Developers could still attempt to gain root access to Glass's operating system and install applications that violate the rules, of course. But those applications wouldn't be distributed through official channels, limiting their adoption. Still, Google has encouraged developers to hack Glass, saying "we intentionally left the device unlocked so you guys could hack it and do crazy fun shit with it." Android generally allows users to sideload applications not available through the official app store, and Glass is based on Android.

A group of congressmen recently sent Google a list of questions about Google Glass and its potential impact on privacy. Among those queries: "When using Google Glass, is it true that this product would be able to use Facial Recognition Technology to unveil personal information?" At least for now, that question is answered.