The United States Justice Department has revealed that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is in the preliminary phase of using 'Rekognition', an image and video analysis software provided by Amazon.
The FBI's program, named 'Tyr,' seeks to use and adapt Amazon's technology to assess and detect sensitive items such as nudity, firearms, explosives, and other inappropriate content.

Amazon Rekognition is a deep learning image analysis service that can identify labels, flag improper material, and perform extremely accurate facial analysis, face comparison, and face search tasks. The software is used for a broad range of applications, including people counting, user verification, and public safety.

Why does it matter?

The move by the FBI has raised criticism over the tool's face recognition capabilities and Amazon's prior announcement of a moratorium on law enforcement use of Rekognition. The controversy around Amazon's product originates from concerns about its facial recognition capabilities, including issues of racial bias and the potential for law enforcement misuse. Because of its consequences for privacy and civil rights, the technology has been criticised, with requests for government intervention and regulation.
Amazon stated that the FBI's use of Rekognition does not violate the moratorium on facial recognition, as the tool has many non-facial analysis and comparison capabilities.