Image Recognition
The US government’s new mobile app for migrants to apply for asylum at the US-Mexico border is blocking many Black people from being able to file their claims because of facial recognition bias in the tech, immigration advocates say. Non-profits that assist Black asylum seekers are finding that the app, CBP One, is failing to register many people with darker skin tones, effectively barring them from their right to request entry into the US. Advocates are protesting that since the app’s rollout by US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) last month, the algorithm problems are sharply reducing the number of Black asylum seekers who can fill out their applications. “There are about 4,000 Black asylum seekers waiting in Reynosa and at least another 1,000 Haitians in Matamoros. “And we help everybody in both cities.”Another solution is that Black asylum seekers buy brand new cellphones.