Resources

Academic research and news investigations about law enforcement uses of facial recognition, SNA diagrams, and the Boogaloo Bois.

Facial recognition "Garbage In, Garbage Out" Police lacking high-quality images train algorithms on forensic sketches, ‘proxy images’ from artist renderings, or images of celebrity look-alikes. Georgetown Law Center on Privacy and Technology, May 16, 2019 Go to article (opens in a new tab)
Social network diagrams Palantir's Secret Predictive Policing Palantir has secretly been using social network analysis in New Orleans, testing its predictive policing technology. The Verge, Feb 27, 2018 Go to article (opens in a new tab)
Boogaloo Bois “The Boogaloo Movement is Not What You Think" Investigation into the social media posts of Boogaloo groups, especially on 4chan and Facebook. Bellingcat, May 27, 2020 Go to article (opens in a new tab)
Facial recognition Face recognition fails '96% of the time' Detroit Police Chief explains that facial-recognition software used by police is extremely inaccurate. Insider, June 30, 2020 Go to article (opens in a new tab)
Boogaloo Bois The Boogaloo Movement Research on the origins, ideology, social media presence, and real world activity of the Boogaloo Movement. Anti-Defamation League Go to article (opens in a new tab)
Facial recognition Police Use of Celebrity Photos NYPD uses “celebrity comparison“ techniques to “brute force” facial recognition searches when they don’t have good images. Vice News, May 16, 2019 Go to article (opens in a new tab)
Facial recognition "Amazon face recognition falsely matches 28 lawmakers with mugshots" ACLU used Amazon's low, out-of-the-box 80% accuracy threshold. The Guardian, July 26, 2018 Go to article (opens in a new tab)
Boogaloo Bois “The 'boogaloo' 'movement,' explained” Boogaloo Bois are “an emerging incarnation of extremism that seems to defy easy categorization.” Vox, June 8, 2020 Go to article (opens in a new tab)
Social network diagrams Small decisions impact data analytics Decisions made when automating data mining and analysis impacts findings. The accuracy and validity of big data is difficult, if not impossible, to assess. Big Data & Society, December 1, 2015 Go to article (opens in a new tab)
Boogaloo Bois “The Making of a Boogaloo Boi” Short documentary about the Boogaloo Bois, focusing on Mike Dunn. Vice News, August 6, 2020 Go to video (opens in a new tab)
Social network diagrams "Criminal Network Analysis inside Law Enforcement" Social network analysis techniques used by police represent social networks static and hierarchical, even when they aren't. International Journal of Police Science & Management, December 1, 2013 Go to article (opens in a new tab)
Boogaloo Bois "From Black Panthers to Boogaloo Bois" Boogaloo Bois, Black Lives Matter 757 Militia, and Black Panthers gather for Lobby Day gun rights rally in Virginia. LA Times, January 18, 2021 Go to video (opens in a new tab)
Facial recognition Face Surveillance Top news and legal advocacy work done by the Electronic Privacy Information Center, including supporting a ban on facial recognition. Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) Go to article (opens in a new tab)
Social network diagrams IBM i2 Analyst's Notebook Social Network Analysis IBM whitepaper about i2 Analyst's Notebook, explaining the measures used in social network analysis. IBM Software, October, 2012 Go to article (opens in a new tab)
Facial recognition Facial recognition in police hands Hundreds of law enforcement agencies use Clearview AI’s facial recognition, which is problematic in light of EU privacy and data protection. New Journal of European Criminal Law, August 13, 2020 Go to article (opens in a new tab)
Facial recognition Fitting the description Facial recognition technologies are predicated on human prejudicial biases, which must be interrogated prior to any innovation. Journal of Responsible Innovation, October 18, 2020 Go to article (opens in a new tab)
Facial recognition NYPD Surveillance Technology An overview of the NYPD’s surveillance technology and potential impacts of these tools. Brennan Center for Justice, October 7, 2019 Go to article (opens in a new tab)
Facial recognition IBM Lets Police Search by Skin Color IBM used secret access to NYPD camera footage to create search features allowing police to search footage for people by hair color, facial hair, and skin tone. The Intercept, September 6, 2018 Go to article (opens in a new tab)
Facial recognition Police Surveillance Machines Police are customers in the tech market with limited options, little guidance about requesting desirable design features, and few incentives to establish guidelines about their use. Law and Political Economy, July 23, 2018 Go to article (opens in a new tab)
Social network diagrams Using social network analysis to study crime Criminal justice record data, used in social network analysis, may include errors, both intentional (e.g. aliases, false information) and unintentional (e.g. transcription errors), including missing data. Social Networks, July 2021 Go to article (opens in a new tab)
Social network diagrams Police Use of Social Media and Social Network Analysis Police frequently use social network analysis to monitor social media. Training and tools have yet to be tailored for law enforcement. RAND Corporation, 2018 Go to article (opens in a new tab)