Observed Signal · Jan 16, 2019 · Policy Update · Source: OnlineMarketing.de · Impact: 2/5 · Sentiment: Negative
Groups warn Google, Amazon, Microsoft on facial recognition sales
An umbrella of about 90 groups including the ACLU, RAICES, and the Electronic Frontier Foundation sent a letter to Google, Amazon, and Microsoft urging them not to sell facial recognition technology to the government. Nicole Ozer of the ACLU warned that company choices could determine whether future generations are tracked by authorities for protests, worship, or everyday life, and cautioned against political misuse against communities of color, religious minorities, and immigrants. Google said it does not intend to sell its facial recognition tech; the FBI is currently testing Amazon's Rekognition, and Amazon's Bezos spoke of a potential $10 billion Pentagon deal for government cloud services. Microsoft called for regulatory oversight of facial recognition use by independent bodies. The piece notes that a sale may be hard to block in the long term, but raising awareness on the issue is a meaningful first step.
Privacy/regulatory implications of biometric technology; groups advocating against government sale
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- About 90 groups signed the letter to Amazon, Google, and Microsoft.
- Signatories include ACLU, RAICES, and EFF.
- They urged Google, Amazon and Microsoft not to sell facial recognition technology to the government.
- Google stated it does not plan to sell its facial recognition technology; the FBI is testing Amazon Rekognition; Bezos discussed a potential $10B Pentagon deal for government cloud services.
- Microsoft called for regulation of facial recognition use by independent bodies.
Connected Companies & Entities
3 Entities mappedRelated Market Signals & Shifts
Recent verified developments and strategic activity across this market segment.
Texas Opens Privacy Probe into Meta's AI Glasses
On May 20, 2026, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton opened a formal investigation into Meta’s Ray‑Ban and Oakley AI glasses over how the devices record, process, and store facial geometry and ambient video. The probe highlights concerns about an "always enabled" mode that continuously processes video while a recording-indicator LED may be hidden or inactive. The ACLU and 75 civil‑liberties organizations had sent Meta an open letter warning that adding facial recognition to the glasses poses serious risks to vulnerable groups. The filing signals that cloud-side processing of ambient video that yields biometric data is subject to biometric-privacy regulation and that the 2024 $1.4 billion settlement with Texas does not foreclose new enforcement. The article also frames three architectural questions — opt-in vs always-on, local vs cloud storage, and on-device vs off-device inference — that camera products must now be able to answer.
Microsoft Xbox creates new division for films, series, parks
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US Government Excludes Microsoft from Visa Program
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