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SLOC pulls the plug on facial recognition
By Pat Reavy and Jennifer Dobner
Deseret News staff writers
WEST VALLEY CITY — The controversial facial recognition system that was to be used for security at the E Center during the Olympics will remain unplugged until after the Games are over.
West Valley Police Chief Alan Kerstein confirmed Friday that a decision was made "in concert with SLOC (Salt Lake Organizing Committee) and West Valley City" not to turn the FaceTrac surveillance system on until Feb. 25.
But when asked why the decision was made, Kerstein said, "You'll have to call SLOC."
Crews from Pennsylvania-based Graphco Technologies Inc., or G-Tec, have been installing since November the cameras that will be used for facial recognition.
West Valley officers had been loading the mugs of terrorists and other state and federal criminals into the database. Pictures of missing children were also being added, in hopes that a camera might spot one.
But just one day before opening ceremonies, the decision was made, reportedly by a SLOC official, to pull the plug. Calls placed by the Deseret News to SLOC were not returned Friday.
Kerstein would not say whether he was pleased or upset with the decision.
"We're professionals. We don't get either happy or mad. We just recognize the situation and try to make the proper decision and life goes on," Kerstein said.
SLOC has security jurisdiction over the interior of each Olympic venue. After the Games, West Valley City again will have control over the E Center and cameras will be in use, Kerstein said.
G-Tec officials said they were puzzled by the last-minute decision and would like to know the reasoning behind it.
"I think we have a right to know why this was done," said Nick Abaid, G-Tec's director of business development. "The thing that is upsetting, quite honestly, is that SLOC has known about us for a long time. They've been through the place and no one has ever told us that we can't be there."
But SLOC has insisted that companies involved in any aspect of security planning keep quiet. SLOC and West Valley police reportedly had reached a deal to use FaceTrac, as long as no one discussed it with the news media.
Abaid said his company has honored that agreement, repeatedly turning away requests for interviews. Nor has G-Tec used the Olympic connection to solicit new business. G-Tec is not an official Olympic sponsor, nor is Packet Video or Aether Systems, the two companies also involved with the FaceTrac installation.
"Obviously, we want to have our technology available and make money on it, but this is not about money," said Abaid. "This is about 9/11. This is about keeping bad people off the street."
FaceTrac was paid for with an $18,000 law enforcement grant obtained by West Valley police. Using it during the Games was not to cost SLOC one penny, Abaid said.
"We're stuck in the middle here between the police department and SLOC. It's so unfair to the public," he said. "There's a safety issue here. Why not utilize state-of-the-art technology if it's available to you for free?"
Over the past month, several high-ranking national officials were in Utah to view the FaceTrac system.
The same system was used at Super Bowl XXXV, which quickly led to the nickname the "Snooper Bowl." It is also used in many Las Vegas casinos.
FaceTrac's computer measures 128 distinct facial features of an individual, ranging from distance between eyes and thickness of lips. Once the profile of the face is complete, the computer searches its database of criminals to look for a match.
Abaid said the upgraded system installed at the E Center is capable of uploading information almost as quickly as any law enforcement agency can add it to the database. G-Tec, Packet Video and Aether Systems shortened the two-to-three month installation timetable normally needed for the system so that it would be ready for the Games, he said.
"Our view is that this technology is the future of what security is going to be," said Abaid. "We're just upset that we didn't get the courtesy of a phone call."
Contributing: Angie Welling
E-mail: preavy@desnews.com; jdobner@desnews.com
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February 9, 2002
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