The point of Sanchez's testimony [PDF] on TechDirt today is this:
1 We can't trust the data being fed to these systems. . .Therefore, we definitely can't trust the predictions being produced by them.
2. Dirty cops create dirty data.
Back in August 2016 there was this post on this blog
Official Police Business: Does predictive policing actually work?
Crime forecasting tools are taking off, but good data is hard to find
By Matt Stroud on @MattStroud
Official Police Business is a weekly column and newsletter by reporter Matt Stroud about new developments in police technology, and the ways technology is changing law enforcement — think body cameras, cell-site simulators, surveillance systems, and electroshock weapons. Sign up to receive OPB in your email every Wednesday at officialpolicebusiness.com, or check for it here at The Verge.
Hunchlab's predictive policing, explained
Video >> https://volume.vox-cdn.com/embed/ae6a05d46?placement=article&tracking=article%3Amiddle&player_type=null&start_time=null#ooid=VsM3FtMDE6nBxlgrY9L3T-H8BJkYGv4m
Predictive policing is everywhere . . . private company PredPol is supposedly helping police to identify where property crimes and robberies might occur. As those cities’ predictive programs have gotten more and more attention, police chiefs have done their best to get in on the action. . .
But does predictive policing actually work?
Back in November 2016 there was this post on this blog
Over the next three years, Mesa will spend nearly $200,000 to implement a state-of-the-art crime-predicting software. Data-Driven Policing Still Problematic
On the other hand, the desire to obtain any data available without a warrant is resulting in some very twisted uses of third-party records. . .
1 We can't trust the data being fed to these systems. . .Therefore, we definitely can't trust the predictions being produced by them.
2. Dirty cops create dirty data.
Back in August 2016 there was this post on this blog
21 August 2016
PredPol: What Is It?
Official Police Business: Does predictive policing actually work? By Matt Stroud on @MattStroud
Official Police Business is a weekly column and newsletter by reporter Matt Stroud about new developments in police technology, and the ways technology is changing law enforcement — think body cameras, cell-site simulators, surveillance systems, and electroshock weapons. Sign up to receive OPB in your email every Wednesday at officialpolicebusiness.com, or check for it here at The Verge.
Hunchlab's predictive policing, explained
Video >> https://volume.vox-cdn.com/embed/ae6a05d46?placement=article&tracking=article%3Amiddle&player_type=null&start_time=null#ooid=VsM3FtMDE6nBxlgrY9L3T-H8BJkYGv4m
Predictive policing is everywhere . . . private company PredPol is supposedly helping police to identify where property crimes and robberies might occur. As those cities’ predictive programs have gotten more and more attention, police chiefs have done their best to get in on the action. . .
But does predictive policing actually work?
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
EU Parliament Told Predictive Policing Software Relies On Dirty Data Generated By Corrupt Cops
from the junk-data,-garbage-outcomes dept
Predictive policing efforts continue to expand around the world. Fortunately, so has the criticism. The data witchcraft that expects a bunch of crap data created by biased policing to coalesce into actionable info continues to be touted by those least likely to be negatively affected by it: namely, law enforcement agencies and the government officials that love them.
The theory that people should be treated like criminals because someone else did some crimes in the area in the past is pretty specious, but as long as it results in temporary drops in criminal activity, fans of unreasonable suspicion will continue to use these tools that still have no long-term proven track record.
It's not just a US problem. It's a problem everywhere. The European Parliament has been asking for feedback on predictive policing efforts, which is more than most agencies in the US are willing to do. The Executive Director of the AI Now Institute, Andrea Nill Sanchez, recently testified during a public hearing on the issue, using the Institute's 2019 report on predictive policing to highlight everything that's wrong with turning law enforcement over to modeling algorithms. (via The Next Web)
The point of Sanchez's testimony [PDF] is this: we can't trust the data being fed to these systems. Therefore, we definitely can't trust the predictions being produced by them. Dirty cops create dirty data. . .
_________________________________________________________________
PredPol: Predictive Policing Software Purchased by City of Mesa
Now Being Used By Government Agencies For Revenue Generation
Source >> TechDirt
Data, even lots of it, can be useful. But it also leads to erroneous conclusions and questionable correlations.
Ever been baffled by the content of a "targeted" ad? Just imagine the fun you'll have when "lol 'targeted' ad" is replaced with nearly-incessant "interactions" with law enforcement
Back on August 21st your MesaZona blogger uploaded three posts about this software purchase that was approved by the Mesa City Council ... those ignored issues are here now.
predWhen even the companies gathering the data are concerned about the implications, there's a problem. (One issue being: why don't they stop?) Anything that can be obtained (preferably in bulk) without a warrant will be. And it gets funneled into predictive policing software that attempts to mold disparate info into a usable whole. Lost in the shuffle are the individuals now represented by data points and algorithms. A data point located in the "wrong" neighborhood could result in surveillance backed by nothing resembling reasonable, articulable suspicion.
It's not all bad, though. There are uses for aggregate data that don't create privacy concerns or fears of ever more biased policing . . .Source >> TechDirt
Data, even lots of it, can be useful. But it also leads to erroneous conclusions and questionable correlations.
Ever been baffled by the content of a "targeted" ad? Just imagine the fun you'll have when "lol 'targeted' ad" is replaced with nearly-incessant "interactions" with law enforcement
Back on August 21st your MesaZona blogger uploaded three posts about this software purchase that was approved by the Mesa City Council ... those ignored issues are here now.
On the other hand, the desire to obtain any data available without a warrant is resulting in some very twisted uses of third-party records. . .
Maria Polletta posted this article in the Arizona Republic on October 21, 2016 - two months after the Mesa City Council approved contracts, addressing lingering issues that few people are aware of . . .
