Tennessee grandmother jailed after AI face recognition error links her to fraud

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/mar/12/tennessee-grandmother-ai-fraud

by danso • 4 months ago

105 28 4 months ago

I have a face that looks like a lot of other people. I have a name that 500+ men use in the world. I don't do anything bad or criminal, but I could be mistaken for a man who matches my face. Nature creates patterns, and sometimes you get a Mr. Potato Head like me with a common face.

jacquesm3• 4 months ago

Absolutely everybody has face doubles.

Identikit got pretty close and there weren't that many bits in there and quite a few of them were hairstyles and that's a choice, not genetics. How many head shapes, noses, eyes, mouths and ears can there be?

A few million? Then everybody has a few thousand doubles. 100 Million? Still 80.

tartoran4• 4 months ago

That's why AI should not be used for identification alone, it's unreliable.

technothrasher• 4 months ago

Absolutely everybody has face doubles.

I once had a waiter in a restaurant that I'd never been to before swear he'd seen me there many times, and when I denied it he was backed up by some of the other staff. Creepy, to say the least. Afterward I realized I should have given him my phone number and told him to call me next time "I" came in, so that I could meet my doppelganger.

awwaiid• 4 months ago

Yes -- I know at least 3 Orion Blasters.

hamburglar• 4 months ago

I wonder if any other men have your face and your name.

afavour• 4 months ago

Insane that this took six months. AI facial recognition should be considered about as reliable as a polygraph, which is to say not usable in court at all.

Shame we’ve got ICE agents roaming the country also using facial recognition to find their targets, huh?

tartoran4• 4 months ago

I know polygraphs are not admissible in court but they're still being used and have quite a bit of swaying. I think it's mainly intimidation at play here.

Yeah, it's absolutely crazy that it took 6 months to clarify this, if she was rich and had a good lawyer she could've solved it faster. I really hope that she at least gets compensated and/or sues the operators or the AI company.

And as far as ICE, I think they don't care that they pick up the wrong people, they just have quotas to reach to unlock bonuses. It's cynical and sad as hell. Hopefully we're gonna be done with them once Trump is gone.

FpUser• 4 months ago

Trump is not a problem. System that lets him do what he does is. I used to admire the US back when I lived in USSR. You can guess the way I look at it lately. I still have some hope in people of the US, they seem to actually be capable to stand for their rights every once in a while. We'll see what happens.

Terr_• 4 months ago

More insult+injury:

But Lipps said Fargo police did not pay for her trip home, leaving her stranded. Local defense attorneys helped cover a hotel room and food on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, and a local non-profit, the F5 Project, was able to help her return to Tennessee, InForum reported.

How the hell are authorities not responsible for helping an innocent person back after forcing them to travel at the point of a gun?

InMice• 4 months ago

I read she had no winter clothes, not even a jacket to go outside in the cold when they released her. She was arrested in TN during warm weather. Not all of the news sites reported the story in complete detail. Her treatment was truly appalling.

DarkmSparks• 4 months ago

US legal system still as world leading as ever I see.

For all the wrong reasons.

Recommended compensation: $1500 per hour.

JumpCrisscross• 4 months ago

Dupe: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47356968

dylan604• 4 months ago

Fargo Police Department. That tracks. Are we sure the Cohens were not involved?

angry_octet• 4 months ago

I would really love to see the Cohens make a reenactment documentary about American injustices, with the lead-in being "These are real events that happened, names have not been changed."

Barbing• 4 months ago

(saved by her bank records)

Don't worry if unbanked, the commercial app industry is already here to save you.

“My Location Ledger” https://apps.apple.com/us/app/my-location-ledger/id675780680...

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t aware that some of the various parties already spying on me do have a one in 1 million chance of coming in handy. To that end, tried this years ago but didn’t work immediately:

“OwnTracks” (FOSS) https://apps.apple.com/us/app/owntracks/id692424691

PS: Flock be ready for our location requests in emergencies, only fair

lewdev2• 4 months ago

How was she saved by her bank records when they already arrested her like she was proven to have done it? How little evidence do cops need to go arrest a woman 1,200 miles away and fuck up her life? And then not even apologize for it? That's fucked up.

newscracker• 4 months ago

“My Location Ledger” https://apps.apple.com/us/app/my-location-ledger/id675780680...

How can anyone trust such an application that declares in the App Store listing as “Data Not Collected”?

comrade1234• 4 months ago

I'm finally glad for my large nose.

gnabgib• 4 months ago

Don't think that's the take away

Tennessee grandmother jailed after AI face recognition error links her to fraud

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