Amazon stops police using its face-recognition tech

SAN FRANCISCO: Amazon on Wednesday announced a one-year ban on letting police use its facial recognition technology, calling for strong government regulations for its ethical use.

The moratorium comes after repeated calls by critics and racial justice groups for Amazon’s cloud computing unit to stop providing police and immigration officials with tools that can be used to unfairly target people based on race.

"We’re implementing a one-year moratorium on police use of Amazon’s facial recognition technology," the Seattle-based computing and retail titan said in a blog post.

"We hope this one-year moratorium might give Congress enough time to implement appropriate rules, and we stand ready to help if requested." The announcement came after a coalition of racial justice groups this week launched an online petition calling for Amazon to cut all ties with police and US immigration officials.