Straight Talk

Video: Hong Kong protesters topple lamp post, prompting speculation about facial recognition

by Charlie Smith on August 25th, 2019 at 11:21 AM
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      The creativity of Hong Kong democracy protesters continues to inspire many around the world.

      They're making great use of encrypted communications services to avoid detection.

      They also wore masks and yellow helmets when they stormed the Legislative Council chamber, making it difficult for authorities to identify them.

      These tactics have impressed Canadian science journalist Ziya Tong, author of The Reality Bubble: Blind Spots, Hidden Truths, and the Dangerous Illusions That Shape Our World.

      She recently tweeted that what's taking place in Hong Kong feels like "the first mass anti-surveillance protest".

      "And yes," she added, "when it comes to hiding faces, those pollution masks help."

      This weekend, the protesters have taken down a lamp tower.

      That's prompted speculation that this structure had facial recognition technology, which has become a hallmark of China's surveillance state.

      As U.S. writer Timothy McLaughlin has pointed out, there's still no proof that the lamp post was spying on people.

      But this is still creating quite a stir over the Internet.

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