PimEyes works like a face search engine: an uploaded image is used to search the web for similar faces. What sounds like a useful tool for keeping track of your own online presence raises serious data protection concerns.
How PimEyes works
At prices from around $29.99 a month, practically anyone can search the internet for facial patterns – to check on themselves, or to research other people.
Advantages
- Control over your own images online
- Easy to use, even for non-technical people
- Targeted monitoring of your privacy
The downsides
The easy availability of facial recognition tools also opens the door to misuse: stalking, unauthorised identification, profiling. The technology thus crosses boundaries that ought to be clear from a data protection point of view.
What this means
Anonymity on the internet is dwindling. Anyone active online – even merely as a conference attendee in a photo – can be identified. A good moment to reconsider your own digital footprint.
