A website called PimEyes allows users to reverse image search for faces, raising privacy concerns about this use of facial recognition technology. The website crawls the public web and indexes publicly accessible photos.
PimEyes users can upload a photo of someone and the website will search for other photos of that person online, along with links to the websites where they came from.
People use PimEyes for purposes such as finding attractive strangers, keeping tabs on one’s digital presence or investigating dating app matches. However, the site could also be used for stalking, surveillance or identifying dissidents.
Anyone can use a basic version of PimEyes, but paid subscriptions offer more searches and access to the image sources. Users can opt out so that their face isn’t included on the site, but some report that the feature doesn’t always work.
PimEyes said in a statement on its website that it “has never been and is not a tool to establish the identity or details of any individual,” and “the target of the PimEyes search engine is not individuals, but publicly accessible websites.”
The company lists the safeguards that are in place to minimize harm, and its CEO said it blocks access to the site in 27 countries due to concerns that authorities will target people there.
This use of facial recognition technology is certainly not new. According to The New York Times’ reporting, Big Tech companies have had it for more than a decade, but have chosen not to release it to the public, citing concerns about privacy and misuse.
Meanwhile, PimEyes launched in 2017. A company called Clearview AI provides a similar service for law enforcement.
There are no federal laws limiting the use of facial recognition technology in the United States, though there are some in states.