The FBI is Working to Accumulate Tattoos for Semiotic Research
Riley von Niessen — June 8, 2016 — Tech
References: eff.org & fastcodesign
The FBI is reportedly looking for new ways to accumulate a tattoo database in order to aid its teams in the process of identifying criminals.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation explained the steps being taken to create a digital system that would provide information on tattooed individuals. The technology would work in unison with a semiotic analysis that would offer a better insight as to what symbols someone identifies with -- and therefore lead them to draw conclusions on their background, gang affiliation and religious and political ideologies. In addition, researchers believe that certain tattoos can contain messages and motivations for crimes. The tattoo database that the FBI is working towards has faced some criticism so far due to the fact that it could stereotype people and invade their privacy -- making the practice potentially unethical.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation explained the steps being taken to create a digital system that would provide information on tattooed individuals. The technology would work in unison with a semiotic analysis that would offer a better insight as to what symbols someone identifies with -- and therefore lead them to draw conclusions on their background, gang affiliation and religious and political ideologies. In addition, researchers believe that certain tattoos can contain messages and motivations for crimes. The tattoo database that the FBI is working towards has faced some criticism so far due to the fact that it could stereotype people and invade their privacy -- making the practice potentially unethical.
Trend Themes
1. Tattoo Analysis Technology - Opportunity to develop data-driven algorithms that analyze tattoos, symbols, and potentially predict gang affiliations and criminal motivations.
2. Semiotic Analysis - The use of semiotics in combination with tattoo identification technology could lead to more in-depth insights into individual backgrounds, political beliefs, and gang affiliations.
3. Privacy Protection Technology - The development of tattoo identification technology raises concerns about privacy and potential for stereotype. The opportunity to build better privacy protection within the technology could lead to wider adoption
Industry Implications
1. Law Enforcement - Opportunities for law enforcement to utilize tattoo identification technology, and data-driven algorithms to identify criminals and prevent crimes.
2. Technology - Opportunities for entrepreneurs working in AI and machine learning to develop new types of data-driven technologies and semiotic techniques.
3. Privacy Protection - Opportunities for companies selling privacy protection solutions to work with law enforcement agencies and the FBI as they develop and implement tattoo identification technology.
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