The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) recently announced the idea of using facial recognition technology. This would verify gamers’ ages and enforce age ratings on games. But how does ESRB’s facial recognition system work and is it actually legal to scan faces before playing video games?
What is the ESRB Proposing?
https://twitter.com/HeathenFam/status/1683897486044286979?s=20
The ESRB wants to use facial scanning software. This would check gamers’ ages before allowing access to mature-rated content. In theory, it would help prevent minors from accessing violent or sexual games.
The ESRB claims this facial recognition concept would provide reassurance to parents. It could automatically block underage users from inappropriate content. But the system’s details are still unclear.
How Would ESRB’s Facial Recognition Work?
While details about the system are scarce, the basic idea is that gamers would submit to a facial scan. The software would estimate the user’s age based on face and biometrics. If the system flagged the player as a minor, they could be denied access to games that have a mature rating.
Privacy and Security Worries
- Giving any organization access to detailed biometric data also carries major privacy implications. Collecting and storing users’ facial information provides a huge potential for security compromises or misuse. ESRB has not clarified how faces would be scanned and how information will be stored or protected.
- Privacy advocates have sharply criticized the security risks of collecting biometric data, especially facial scans. Gaming companies storing users’ detailed facial information would create lucrative targets for cybercriminals. Hacking into facial databases could enable identity theft or tracking of individuals without consent.
- Past government and corporate facial recognition breaches have exposed citizens’ biometrics. For example, a 2019 breach leaked the photos and ID scans of 100,000 people applying for U.S. visas. ESRB has not stated how it would prevent similar gaming security compromises. Storing millions of gamers’ facial data points could be a ticking privacy time bomb if not properly secured.
- Any facial recognition system would need to embed strict access controls and encryption safeguards. Ethical hacking and external security audits would help identify vulnerabilities proactively. But ultimately, collecting and managing extremely sensitive biometric data at scale poses high risks even with safeguards in place.
Is ESRB’s Facial Recognition Legal?
The legality is questionable. Making facial scans mandatory to play certain games could be challenged. Scanned biometric data typically requires informed user consent under privacy laws, which seems difficult for this age verification concept.
For now, the ESRB stresses this is just an idea under consideration. Much more transparency on how facial recognition would work is still needed from them. Given the privacy and fairness concerns around scanning faces, many view this proposal with deep skepticism.
The ESRB is proposing mandatory face scans to the FTC that can lock you out of your own games if you are younger, or look younger, than the age rating. I'm not making this up.
Link to video: https://t.co/H5X6ibyWNO pic.twitter.com/7B5fMVs3VA
— Melonie Mac ✝️🎮🖤 (@MelonieMac) July 25, 2023
What are your thoughts about this subject? If you have any further questions regarding how ESRB’s Facial Recognition system work or if it is legal, comment down. We would love to hear your thoughts.
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