tag:theconversation.com,2011:/es/topics/identification-5246/articlesIdentification – The Conversation2023-09-20T12:26:43Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2102312023-09-20T12:26:43Z2023-09-20T12:26:43ZYour unique body odor could identify who you are and provide insights into your health – all from the touch of a hand<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549153/original/file-20230919-31-na83ko.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C2120%2C1414&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The scent emitted from your hands could offer clues about who you are.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/digital-composite-image-of-hand-amidst-geometric-royalty-free-image/1307462742">Siro Rodenas Cortes/Moment via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>From the aroma of fresh-cut grass to the smell of a loved one, you encounter scents in every part of your life. Not only are you constantly surrounded by odor, you’re also producing it. And it is so distinctive that it can be used to tell you apart from everyone around you.</p>
<p>Your scent is a complex product influenced by many factors, including your genetics. Researchers believe that a particular group of genes, the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/147470490700500206">major histocompatibility complex</a>, play a large role in scent production. These genes are involved in the body’s immune response and are believed to influence body odor by encoding the production of specific proteins and chemicals.</p>
<p>But your scent isn’t fixed once your body produces it. As sweat, oils and other secretions make it to the surface of your skin, <a href="https://asm.org/Articles/2021/December/Microbial-Origins-of-Body-Odor">microbes break down and transform</a> these compounds, changing and adding to the odors that make up your scent. This scent medley emanates from your body and settles into the environments around you. And it can be used to track, locate or identify a particular person, as well as distinguish between healthy and unhealthy people.</p>
<p><a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=H4mfIRkAAAAJ&hl=en">We are</a> <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=H_xIriMAAAAJ&hl=en">researchers who</a> <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=JgBnpdkAAAAJ&hl=en">specialize in</a> studying human scent through the detection and characterization of gaseous chemicals called <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111%2Fj.1365-2133.2008.08748.x">volatile organic compounds</a>. These gases can relay an abundance of information for both forensic researchers and health care providers.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Human scent analysis breaks down body odor to its individual components.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Science of body odor</h2>
<p>When you are near another person, you can feel their body heat without touching them. You may even be able to smell them without getting very close. The natural warmth of the human body creates a temperature differential with the air around it. You warm up the air nearest to you, while air that’s farther away remains cool, creating <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1556-4029.2009.01236.x">warm currents of air</a> that surround your body. </p>
<p>Researchers believe that this plume of air helps disperse your scent by pushing the millions of skin cells you shed over the course of a day off your body and into the environment. These skin cells <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-73003-5_279">act as boats or rafts</a> carrying glandular secretions and your resident microbes – a combination of ingredients that emit your scent – and depositing them in your surroundings.</p>
<p>Your scent is composed of the volatile organic compounds present in the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10886-005-5801-4">gases emitted from your skin</a>. These gases are the combination of sweat, oils and trace elements exuded from the glands in your skin. The primary components of your odor depend on internal factors such as your race, ethnicity, biological sex and other traits. Secondary components waver based on factors like stress, diet and illness. And tertiary components from external sources like perfumes and soaps build on top of your distinguishable odor profile.</p>
<h2>Identity of scent</h2>
<p>With so many factors influencing the scent of any given person, your body odor can be used as an identifying feature. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-73003-5_279">Scent detection canines</a> searching for a suspect can look past all the other odors they encounter to follow a scent trail left behind by the person they are pursuing. This practice relies on the assumption that each person’s scent is distinct enough that it can be distinguished from other people’s.</p>
<p>Researchers have been studying the discriminating potential of human scent for over three decades. A 1988 experiment demonstrated that a dog could distinguish <a href="https://doi.org/10.1068/p170549">identical twins living apart</a> and exposed to different environmental conditions by their scent alone. This is a feat that could not be accomplished using DNA evidence, as identical twins share the same genetic code.</p>
<p>The field of human scent analysis has expanded over the years to further study the composition of human scent and how it can be used as a form of forensic evidence. Researchers have seen differences in human odor composition that can be classified based on sex, gender, race and ethnicity. Our research team’s 2017 study of 105 participants found that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.forsciint.2016.09.011">specific combinations</a> of 15 volatile organic compounds collected from people’s hands could distinguish between race and ethnicity with an accuracy of 72% for whites, 82% for East Asians and 67% for Hispanics. Based on a combination of 13 compounds, participants could be distinguished as male or female with an overall 80% accuracy.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Researchers have trained dogs to sniff out COVID-19 infections.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Researchers are also producing models to predict the characteristics of a person based on their scent. From a sample pool of 30 women and 30 men, our team built a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0286452">machine learning model</a> that could predict a person’s biological sex with 96% accuracy based on hand odor.</p>
<h2>Scent of health</h2>
<p>Odor research continues to provide insights into illnesses. Well-known examples of using scent in medical assessments include <a href="https://theconversation.com/doctor-dog-how-our-canine-companions-can-help-us-detect-covid-and-other-diseases-204603">seizure and diabetic alert canines</a>. These dogs can give their handlers time to prepare for an impending seizure or notify them when they need to adjust their blood glucose levels.</p>
<p>While these canines often work with a single patient known to have a condition that requires close monitoring, medical detection dogs can also indicate whether someone is ill. For example, researchers have shown that dogs can be trained to <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-scent-of-sickness-5-questions-answered-about-using-dogs-and-mice-and-ferrets-to-detect-disease-151832">detect cancer</a> in people. Canines have also been trained to <a href="https://theconversation.com/dogs-can-be-trained-to-sniff-out-covid-19-a-team-of-forensic-researchers-explain-the-science-169012">detect COVID-19 infections</a> at a 90% accuracy rate.</p>
<p>Similarly, our research team found that a laboratory analysis of <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics13040707">hand odor samples</a> could discriminate between people who are COVID-19 positive or negative with 75% accuracy.</p>
<h2>Forensics of scent</h2>
<p>Human scent offers a noninvasive method to collect samples. While direct contact with a surface like touching a doorknob or wearing a sweater provides a clear route for your scent to transfer to that surface, simply standing still will also transfer your odor into the surrounding area.</p>
<p>Although human scent has the potential to be a critical form of forensic evidence, it is still a developing field. Imagine a law enforcement officer collecting a scent sample from a crime scene in hopes that it may match with a suspect. </p>
<p>Further research into human scent analysis can help fill the gaps in our understanding of the individuality of human scent and how to apply this information in forensic and biomedical labs.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/210231/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dr. Kenneth G. Furton has consulted for and owns shares with VOC Health, Inc. He has received funding from the Netherlands National Police, the U.S. Department of Defense, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Colgate-Palmolive, and the National Institutes of Health.
</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dr. Vidia Gokool formerly of Florida International University, is currently an employee of the Department of Energy. The writing and preparation of this work was in part performed under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Energy by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory under Contract DE-AC52-07NA27344.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Chantrell Frazier does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Human scent could one day be used as evidence in forensics and as diagnostic information in medicine.Chantrell Frazier, Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Food Science, Framingham State UniversityKenneth G. Furton, Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida International UniversityVidia A. Gokool, Postdoctoral Researcher, Lawrence Livermore National LaboratoryLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2109802023-08-08T20:05:49Z2023-08-08T20:05:49ZWorldcoin is scanning eyeballs to build a global ID and finance system. Governments are not impressed<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541601/original/file-20230808-25-mlnz26.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C2560%2C1708&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Worldcoin</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Millions of people worldwide are lining up to stare into a silver sphere about the size of a bowling ball so their irises can be scanned in exchange for online identity verification and “free” cryptocurrency. </p>
<p>The silver spheres, known as “Orbs”, are part of the <a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2023/08/07/1077250/worldcoin-officially-launched-why-its-being-investigated/">Worldcoin platform</a>, which officially launched in July 2023 after an 18-month testing phase. Led by Sam Altman (chief executive of OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT) and entrepreneur Alex Blania, Worldcoin offers users a “digital passport” known as World ID and small allocations of a cryptocurrency token also called Worldcoin (WLD), “<a href="https://worldcoin.org/cofounder-letter">simply for being human</a>”. </p>
<p>Worldcoin aims to provide a “<a href="https://worldcoin.org/blog/worldcoin/proof-of-personhood-what-it-is-why-its-needed">proof of personhood</a>” to distinguish humans from artificial intelligence (AI) systems online. </p>
<p>However, critics say the company is essentially bribing people to hand over highly sensitive biometric data. Governments are taking note: the Worldcoin platform has already been suspended in Kenya, and is under investigation in several other countries.</p>
<h2>Gaze into the Orb</h2>
<p>Users can download the WorldApp on their mobile phone, then find their “nearest Orb”. The Orb uses iris scans to uniquely identify a person. </p>
<p>Once the person has their iris scanned, they receive a World ID which will function as an online ID much like a Google or Facebook login. World ID is meant to be different because it can prove the user is human – and more private, because it does not link to other personal information about the user. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541648/original/file-20230808-15-37xtfa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541648/original/file-20230808-15-37xtfa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/541648/original/file-20230808-15-37xtfa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541648/original/file-20230808-15-37xtfa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541648/original/file-20230808-15-37xtfa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541648/original/file-20230808-15-37xtfa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541648/original/file-20230808-15-37xtfa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/541648/original/file-20230808-15-37xtfa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Worldcoin says an iris scan can be used as ‘proof of personhood’.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Worldcoin</span></span>
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<p>Despite the “digital passport” label, World ID is not intended to reveal or verify a user’s identity in the conventional sense. It merely establishes the user as “a unique and real person”, rather than a bot. </p>
<p>In most countries, the user is also entitled to units of WLD cryptocurrency once their iris scan is complete.</p>
<p>The Worldcoin website currently lists <a href="https://worldcoin.org/find-orb">60 Orb locations</a> worldwide, particularly in Europe, Asia, North America and South America, and notes there will also be Orb “pop-ups”. </p>
<p>At the time of writing, there appear to be no Orb locations in Australia, so people in Australia cannot earn WLD tokens “for being human”. But they can purchase the WLD cryptocurrency via certain cryptocurrency exchanges and download the World App, which also functions as a cryptocurrency wallet. </p>
<h2>Cash for eyeballs jeopardises human rights</h2>
<p>Altman is a key player in the AI boom that supposedly makes Worldcoin necessary, so critics have <a href="https://www.thestreet.com/cryptocurrency/worldcoin-sam-altman-ai-biometric-data-collection-outlandish-bribe">suggested</a> he is “simply profiting from both AI’s problem and solution”. </p>
<p>When the Worldcoin platform officially launched, after signing up some 2 million users in a testing phase, Altman said the Orbs were scanning a <a href="https://www.cryptopolitan.com/sam-altman-claims-worldcoin-onboarding-1-user-every-8-seconds-despite-skepticism-and-waning-interest/">new user every eight seconds</a>. </p>
<p>In Kenya, the launch saw “tens of thousands of individuals waiting in lines over a three-day period to secure a World ID”, which Worldcoin attributed to <a href="https://time.com/6300522/worldcoin-sam-altman/">“overwhelming” demand</a> for identity verification. </p>
<p>Independent reporting suggests the promise of “free” cryptocurrency was a more common motive. In most locations, Worldcoin offers a “<a href="https://www.coindesk.com/business/2023/07/24/worldcoin-release-tokenomics-report-geofenced-for-some-countries/">genesis grant</a>” of 25 units of its WLD cryptocurrency when users scan their irises. (The value of WLD fluctuates, but the grant has been worth around US$50, or $A75, over the past month.)</p>
<p>People queuing for the Orb in Kenya <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-66383325">told the BBC</a> “I want to register because I’m jobless and I’m broke,” and</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I really like Worldcoin because of the money. I’m not worried about the data. As long as the money comes.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Orb operators are also <a href="https://worldcoin.org/be-a-worldcoin-operator">paid for each user they sign up</a>.</p>
<p>Critics have labelled this strategy of paying people to scan their irises as <a href="https://www.thestreet.com/cryptocurrency/worldcoin-sam-altman-ai-biometric-data-collection-outlandish-bribe">dystopian and equivalent to bribery</a>. </p>
<p>Offering money for sensitive data arguably makes privacy – a human right – a luxury only the wealthy can afford. People experiencing poverty may risk future harms to meet their immediate survival needs. </p>
<h2>‘Cataloguing eyeballs’: the risks of using biometric data</h2>
<p>Worldcoin uses irises for verification because every iris is unique and therefore difficult to fake. But the risks of handing over such data are very high. Unlike a driver’s licence or a passport, you cannot replace your iris if the data is compromised. </p>
<p>Surveillance whistleblower Edward Snowden has criticised Worldcoin for “<a href="https://twitter.com/Snowden/status/1451990496537088000">cataloguing eyeballs</a>”, and <a href="https://twitter.com/Snowden/status/1451993036196618251?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">tweeted</a> about the unacceptable risks: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>Don’t use biometrics for anything. […] The human body is not a ticket-punch.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Worldcoin claims the iris scans are deleted after being converted into a unique iris code, which becomes the user’s World ID. The World ID is then stored on a decentralised blockchain, with the aim of preventing fakes or duplicates.</p>
<p>However, the iris scan is only deleted <em>if</em> the user opts for the “Without Data Storage” option (which may mean they need to return to an Orb to re-verify in the future). If the user selects the “<a href="https://worldcoin.org/privacy">With Data Storage</a>” option, Worldcoin states the iris scan is sent via encrypted communication channels to its distributed data stores where it is encrypted at rest.</p>
<p>In either case, the user must <a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2023/08/07/1077250/worldcoin-officially-launched-why-its-being-investigated/">simply trust</a> the company to delete the biometric data, or appropriately secure it against misuse. </p>
<p>There have been many instances in which Silicon Valley companies have promised to secure data and to strictly limit its use, only to <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2023/05/03/tech/ftc-meta-younger-users/index.html">break those promises</a> by disclosing the data to other companies or government agencies or failing to secure it against attack.</p>
<p>Journalist Eileen Guo also points out that Worldcoin has not yet clarified <a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2023/08/07/1077250/worldcoin-officially-launched-why-its-being-investigated/">whether it still uses stored biometric data to train AI models</a> and whether it has deleted biometric data collected during its test phase.</p>
<p>And despite the supposed security of biometric scanning, there have already been reports of fraudulent uses of the Worldcoin system. For example, <a href="https://twitter.com/BlockBeatsAsia/status/1659060950748782594">black market speculators</a> are alleged to have persuaded people in Cambodia and Kenya to sign up for Worldcoin and then sell their World IDs and WLD tokens for cash. </p>
<h2>Regulatory action</h2>
<p>Regulators in several countries are taking action. The Kenyan government has now suspended Worldcoin’s activities, stating regulatory concerns surrounding the project “require urgent action”. </p>
<p>The Communications Authority of Kenya and Office of the Data Protection Commissioner say they are concerned about the offer of money in exchange for consent to data collection; how securely the data are stored; and “<a href="https://www.ca.go.ke/index.php/ca-and-data-commissioner-warn-kenyans-over-worldcoin">massive citizen data in the hands of private actors without an appropriate framework</a>”. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/frances-privacy-watchdog-says-worldcoin-legality-seems-questionable-2023-07-28/">German privacy watchdog</a> is investigating Worldcoin’s business practices with support from the French privacy regulator, which called Worldcoin’s data practices “questionable”. The <a href="https://ico.org.uk/about-the-ico/media-centre/news-and-blogs/2023/07/ico-statement-on-worldcoin/">UK Information Commissioner’s Office</a> has announced it will investigate Worldcoin, referring to the high risk of processing special category biometric data.</p>
<p>While there are no Orbs in Australia yet, the federal privacy regulator has previously found some companies in <a href="http://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/cases/cth/AICmr/2021/50.html?context=1;query=20initiated20into22;mask_path=">breach of the privacy law</a> for failing to obtain valid consent for the use of biometric data and collecting it when it was not reasonably necessary.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/210980/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Katharine Kemp receives funding from the UNSW Allens Hub for Technology, Law and Innovation. She is a Member of the Expert Panel of the Consumer Policy Research Centre, and the Australian Privacy Foundation.</span></em></p>Worldcoin wants to provide ‘proof of personhood’ in an AI-filled future, but critics and governments are unimpressedKatharine Kemp, Associate Professor, Faculty of Law & Justice, and Deputy Director, Allens Hub for Technology, Law & Innovation, UNSW SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1915752022-09-29T07:09:58Z2022-09-29T07:09:58ZI’ve given out my Medicare number. How worried should I be about the latest Optus data breach?<p>Medicare card numbers are the latest personal details to be exposed as part of the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2022/sep/29/optus-data-breach-everything-we-know-so-far-about-what-happened">Optus data breach</a>.</p>
<p>Optus <a href="https://www.optus.com.au/support/cyberattack/medicare-card-number-information">has confirmed</a> this affects 14,900 valid Medicare numbers that have not expired, and a further 22,000 expired card numbers.</p>
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<p>But this isn’t the first time Australians’ Medicare numbers have been exposed. And some privacy and cybersecurity experts have <a href="https://theconversation.com/after-the-medicare-breach-we-should-be-cautious-about-moving-our-health-records-online-80472">long been concerned</a> about the security of our health data.</p>
<p>Here’s what you can do if you’re concerned about the latest Medicare breach, and what needs to happen next.</p>
<h2>What’s the big deal?</h2>
<p>Your Medicare number gives you access to subsidised services across Australia’s health system. Most Australians have a number, whether or not they use these services.</p>
<p>Your Medicare card (as a plastic card or digitally, on your phone) is an official identifier. So alongside a driver’s licence, tax file number, birth certificate and passport, it can also be used as “proof of identity”. You may have supplied your Medicare number when opening a bank account, or signing up for a phone plan.</p>
<p>The idea is to minimise the chance people are using fake identities to wrongfully gain benefits from governments and business, including taking part in criminal activities such as money laundering.</p>
<p>Businesses and agencies are not meant to match your Medicare number with other data (eroding your privacy) other than in <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/2021/08/data-matching-notice.pdf">exceptional</a> circumstances. </p>
<p>But they commonly accept sight of the physical/digital card bearing the number as proof of who you claim to be and risk data breaches by retaining copies of what they saw. Optus was such a business.</p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-optus-hacker-claims-theyve-deleted-the-data-heres-what-experts-want-you-to-know-191494">The 'Optus hacker' claims they've deleted the data. Here's what experts want you to know</a>
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<h2>What should happen to protect your Medicare number?</h2>
<p>In theory, your Medicare number is protected by a number of different types of legislation – both national and at the state/territory level.</p>
<p>There are <a href="https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/your-right-to-privacy?context=1">privacy laws</a>. These are meant to prevent businesses and government agencies from <a href="https://www.oaic.gov.au/privacy/other-legislation">unauthorised</a> use of Medicare and other official identifiers for profiling people. These laws are also meant to prevent undisclosed sharing with other entities, such as individuals or businesses.</p>
<p>Then there are <a href="https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about-us/our-portfolios/cyber-security/strategy/strengthening-australias-cyber-security-regulations-and-incentives">cybersecurity</a> and other <a href="http://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/legis/cth/consol_act/cca1995115/sch1.html">criminal laws</a>. These also aim to prevent unauthorised access, sale and sharing of your <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1045235421001155#b0160">Medicare</a> number and other data (known as <a href="https://eprints.qut.edu.au/101958/">metadata</a>) stored by telecommunication providers.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/what-should-australian-companies-be-doing-right-now-to-protect-our-privacy-85247">What should Australian companies be doing right now to protect our privacy</a>
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<h2>Has this happened before?</h2>
<p>Medicare numbers have been breached before, <a href="https://theconversation.com/after-the-medicare-breach-we-should-be-cautious-about-moving-our-health-records-online-80472">in 2017</a>. An official <a href="https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/sites/default/files/2017/10/final-report.pdf">inquiry</a> noted trade in stolen Medicare numbers on the dark web. </p>
<p>The 2017 breach was apparently much larger, but the Optus numbers may grow as the investigation continues.</p>
<p>Experts have also <a href="https://pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/the-simple-process-of-re-identifying-patients-in-public-health-records">raised concern</a> about the government’s authorised release in 2016 of apparently de-identified health data. In fact, patient details could be identified, using a number of simple steps. </p>
<p>These two earlier examples should have meant both health agencies and businesses have taken extra care about their obligations to safeguard health data.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/after-the-medicare-breach-we-should-be-cautious-about-moving-our-health-records-online-80472">After the Medicare breach, we should be cautious about moving our health records online</a>
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<h2>What if your Medicare number has been exposed?</h2>
<p>Unauthorised use of a Medicare number doesn’t necessarily result in large-scale identity crime.</p>
<p>For instance, Minister for Government Services Bill Shorten <a href="https://twitter.com/billshortenmp/status/1574688878510100480">has said</a> a Medicare number alone cannot unlock access to someone’s myGov account (and therefore access to someone’s welfare or tax details).</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1574688878510100480"}"></div></p>
<p>However, the Optus data breach – and future data breaches in the public and private sector – does provide Australian and overseas criminals with a set of identifiers (including passport and driver’s licence numbers), that can be used for a range of identity crimes, such as impersonating someone else.</p>
<p>Optus is <a href="https://www.optus.com.au/support/cyberattack/medicare-card-number-information">advising affected customers</a> to replace their Medicare card, at no cost, via their Medicare online account at myGov, the Express Plus Medicare mobile app, or by calling Medicare on 132 011.</p>
<p>Further details are available via <a href="https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/what-to-do-if-youve-been-affected-recent-optus-data-breach">Services Australia</a>.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/what-does-the-optus-data-breach-mean-for-you-and-how-can-you-protect-yourself-a-step-by-step-guide-191332">What does the Optus data breach mean for you and how can you protect yourself? A step-by-step guide</a>
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<h2>What else needs to happen?</h2>
<p>As with many data breaches, details about what happened at Optus, how and who is affected are only slowly trickling out.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.oaic.gov.au">Office of the Australian Information Commission</a> – the national privacy regulator – needs to run a rigorous and detailed investigation and release its findings publicly.</p>
<p>This needs to be accompanied by a hard-hitting independent inquiry of what happened at Optus. This requires IT expertise, which the Office of the Australian Information Commission may not have. Such an inquiry would also demonstrate Optus’ commitment to learn from any failures.</p>
<p>As we have seen before, businesses and government agencies cannot assume a data breach “won’t happen to them”. We need to find out what happened at Optus to ensure the future privacy of some of our most personal data.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/191575/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dr Arnold is currently finalising a monograph on identity crime. He is a former director of the Australian Privacy Foundation</span></em></p>This isn’t the first time Australians’ Medicare numbers have been exposed.Bruce Baer Arnold, Associate Professor, School of Law, University of CanberraLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1596672021-04-30T15:00:56Z2021-04-30T15:00:56ZWhy we can still recognise people in face masks<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/398086/original/file-20210430-18-pdqd8o.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=753%2C0%2C3505%2C3045&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/african-american-woman-wearing-medical-mask-1793657722">oneinchpunch/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The average person knows about <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rspb.2018.1319">5,000 faces</a> – from family and friends to the cashier at the local store. Most people can recognise familiar faces with ease, even from low quality images, or from photos that are many years old. We often recognise familiar faces even if we <a href="https://bpspsychub.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.2044-8295.1986.tb02199.x">can’t remember a person’s name</a> or how we know them. </p>
<p>Most of us take this ability to recognise familiar faces for granted – but when public health issues require our friends to mask up, covering their chins, lips, cheeks and noses, are our facial recognition skills scrambled? </p>
<p>We investigated this question in <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsos.201169">our recent study</a> and compared the impact of masks (which cover the lower portion of the face) with that of sunglasses (which cover the eye region). Despite face masks covering a large proportion of our faces, we found that people find it surprisingly easy to recognise familiar faces behind masks – speaking to the remarkable versatility of this human skill.</p>
<h2>Familiar faces</h2>
<p>Identifying familiar faces is a useful day-to-day skill, but the identification of unfamiliar faces is also important in the context of <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0150036">forensic investigations</a> and <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0103510">security scenarios</a>. Our study measured the recognition of both familiar and unfamiliar faces.</p>
<p>We presented our participants with pairs of face images, and asked them to decide whether the faces belonged to the same person or different people. One image of the pair was always presented with no concealment, and the other showed either no concealment, an image in sunglasses, or in a face mask. Participants completed the task for familiar faces (images of celebrities) and for unfamiliar faces.</p>
<p>Even though face masks cover a significant part of the face, we found that our participants identified familiar faces in masks with <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rsos.201169">around 90% accuracy</a> – no worse than the results for faces wearing sunglasses, and only slightly worse than unconcealed faces.</p>
<p>These results demonstrate just how robust familiar face recognition can be. And our task only involved comparisons of still images of faces. It’s possible that in the real world, information from the <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0956797613492986?casa_token=VAPKa62kkjYAAAAA%253AESo_ejfvaYNwpXeSw69FLDAVif_F26PFAn_oC84118wPk4FVjLPNhyGTGfmn0NLLVJTbBiGLgX8&journalCode=pssa">body or gait</a> or from clothing may supplement the reduced information from the masked face, increasing accuracy further. </p>
<p>For unfamiliar faces, both masks and sunglasses reduced recognition accuracy further. Face masks reduced performance the most, but only a little more than sunglasses. But with or without masks and sunglasses, recognising unfamiliar faces generally tends to be difficult and <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.3758/BRM.42.1.286">error-prone</a>.</p>
<p>Still, some people are highly adept at this task. <a href="https://pure.hud.ac.uk/en/publications/what-is-a-super-recogniser">Super-recognisers</a> – people who excel at <a href="https://theconversation.com/facial-recognition-research-reveals-new-abilities-of-super-recognisers-128414">recognising faces</a> – were also recruited to complete the tasks by Professor Josh Davis from the University of Greenwich <a href="https://www.superrecognisers.com/">Face and Voice Recognition Lab</a> database. Super-recognisers were also impaired by masks, <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rsos.201169">but they performed far better than regular people</a> in all concealment conditions.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/facial-recognition-research-reveals-new-abilities-of-super-recognisers-128414">Facial recognition: research reveals new abilities of 'super-recognisers'</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Given that familiar face identification ability was barely impaired when faces were masked, why is it that humans recognise familiar faces so well? Humans may be born with an <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/24937459?seq=1">innate preference</a> for face-like stimuli. We are so attuned to seeking out faces in our environment that we often pick out face-like patterns within objects or clouds – a phenomenon known as “<a href="https://theconversation.com/holy-grilled-cheese-sandwich-what-is-pareidolia-14170">face pareidolia</a>”. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A cloud shaped like the profile of a face in a blue sky" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/398107/original/file-20210430-18-5m48zt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/398107/original/file-20210430-18-5m48zt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398107/original/file-20210430-18-5m48zt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398107/original/file-20210430-18-5m48zt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398107/original/file-20210430-18-5m48zt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398107/original/file-20210430-18-5m48zt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/398107/original/file-20210430-18-5m48zt.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Our tendency to see faces in clouds and other objects shows how we’re programmed for recognition.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/clouds-shaped-like-human-faces-blue-1770647444">neenawat khenyothaa/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>It has been suggested that face processing is adaptive – that our ancestors had an <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rstb.2010.0358#d3e2561">evolutionary advantage</a> if they could tell the difference between a friend and a foe, which would help them decide who to approach and who to avoid. </p>
<p>The ability to recognise familiar faces is attributed to <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1080/17470218.2015.1136656?casa_token=t0KRo2EH5KcAAAAA%253A-pXWTPVutRsZ-ws9Zaur3Pixr82UbWmOzT9o5A0csBROqmIIzcnfCYsz_xSHR0QJngJ6TPpOs90">learning the different ways</a> that the same face can look over different encounters, and <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0010027721000305?casa_token=96jwGsrw6QkAAAAA:wcZSCKn7olxYDiU5w1Q_2BRPP1Q7jTI0gXZ8h3j4E8sF64J-Ej0sTFfnVx5lb1ytZTbUSoWr">learning how the face differs to other known faces</a>. This makes unfamiliar face identification far <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0010027711002022?casa_token=O9_vC1Hp1yQAAAAA:_hunFNp2knB8Ln3kkXqAXhtboxZ6iO0zsJ3VVipdv8jj749VlFzr3CcNwbO6Mxiw64-L_GGU">more challenging</a>, as these factors are unknown for a face that we have little experience with. For unfamiliar faces, we don’t know how a face varies across changes in pose, expression, lighting, or age – or how the face differs from other unknown faces.</p>
<h2>Expert recognisers</h2>
<p>How can this explain our surprisingly adept performance for identifying faces covered by masks? For familiar faces, we likely have enough experience with the face that we can make an identification based on the limited available information. We may have seen the face obscured before, or our representation of the full face is so strong that we can handle the reduction in visible features. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/face-masks-why-your-eyes-might-be-saying-more-than-you-realise-145076">Face masks: why your eyes might be saying more than you realise</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>In contrast, for unfamiliar faces, we cannot rely on experience with the face. Super-recognisers are the anomalies here and, while it’s unclear why they’re so good at identifying faces, there is evidence that face recognition abilities may be <a href="https://www.pnas.org/content/107/11/5238.short">genetic</a>.</p>
<p>There are currently 7.4 billion faces on the planet. Though we’ll only ever encounter a tiny fraction of them, our ability to remember and recognise familiar faces is an evolutionary skill hundreds of thousands of years in the making. Our research shows it’s a skill barely affected when the faces in question are hidden by a mask.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/159667/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Even though they cover most of our features, face masks are no match for our highly-evolved capacity to recognise friends.Eilidh Noyes, Senior Lecturer in Cognitive Psychology, University of HuddersfieldKatie Gray, Associate Professor, School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of ReadingKay Ritchie, Senior Lecturer in Cognitive Psychology, University of LincolnLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1242032019-11-04T14:48:52Z2019-11-04T14:48:52ZPupil changes linked to eyewitness memory strength in police lineups<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/300091/original/file-20191104-88382-13g2q25.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/macro-eye-brown-244241410?src=7a262708-e603-4feb-bf32-bb0391a1346b-1-19">air009/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Every year, many innocent people go to prison. Civil Liberties Australia estimates suggest that 7% of the country’s prisoners <a href="https://www.cla.asn.au/News/prisoners-australia-7-innocent/">are innocent</a>. In the US, estimates for the number of cases that would support a claim of wrongful conviction range between <a href="https://dc.law.utah.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1130&context=scholarship">0.02%</a> and <a href="https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/251115.pdf">11.6%</a>. Other research suggests that about <a href="https://uk.sagepub.com/en-gb/eur/convicted-but-innocent/book5440#description">10,000 people</a> in the US are wrongfully convicted every year.</p>
<p>It is also estimated that <a href="https://www.innocenceproject.org/eyewitness-identification-reform/">over 70% of wrongful convictions</a> in the US are related to an eyewitness misidentifying the wrong person. Research shows that it’s very difficult to recognise someone you have only seen briefly before, particularly if you were afraid during the crime or <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Lisa_Goodman/publication/286970550_Domestic_Violence_Victims%27_Experiences_in_the_Legal_System/links/56b249ba08ae795dd5c7afd6/Domestic-Violence-Victims-Experiences-in-the-Legal-System.pdf">during the identification procedure</a>.</p>
<p>We’re interested in whether psychological research can help improve the reliability of identification procedures. It’s early days, but <a href="https://u9648322.ct.sendgrid.net/wf/click?upn=u-2BGpmJjK6GMwjtTW1XoK4vgZn1TWMFEC9c1PSLVT5mdgsK-2F88oE2nd0tctqKk8JY3qsGarEhlb5ad2Tr-2Fj7Qo3oMvnhsgng7zwCdOK3Alrk-3D_73bbaKPOSZwuLSbF-2Fots-2BT9147nwj28u9ZFAcSwbV4KqsPwQUSRrwg8SWGNMyUlXbT6slsfXYXOHHsTY5qL-2Bs2cRUYdQdaAybqKiUK-2FtaeQ8z3KPj8yqDc5XYJCKSp9fjtgVcT633y01-2FB-2F33CiJlqFCVoRncFTlZodKD5T5-2BBuQBbrWVLXJoqnq3N6HCU2L8G5el-2BZ8TDgv-2FOnElB3nfNdrSIEVKVuCpMg-2FUCuHlw6x29d9XwpL9eoWq7pJE4eu3VN9l8wSMwaazQoTGGPV31JDwKy3DaHvdvfWFCpP0GA-3D">our latest study</a> suggests that measuring a witness’s pupil size during an identification procedure may give some indication of how strong their recognition really is as they look at each face.</p>
<p>Your pupils don’t just change size in response to light levels. For instance, they get larger when you look at someone you <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0018506X07001699">find attractive</a>, or when you have to complete a <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167876010000772">difficult mathematical task</a>. Pupils are also larger <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1469-8986.2011.01217.x">when people remember seeing something</a> they have seen before compared to when looking at something they have never seen before. This means we can use measurements of pupil size (pupillometry) to infer things about what is going on in the brain as people perform tasks.</p>
<p>For <a href="https://u9648322.ct.sendgrid.net/wf/click?upn=u-2BGpmJjK6GMwjtTW1XoK4vgZn1TWMFEC9c1PSLVT5mdgsK-2F88oE2nd0tctqKk8JY3qsGarEhlb5ad2Tr-2Fj7Qo3oMvnhsgng7zwCdOK3Alrk-3D_73bbaKPOSZwuLSbF-2Fots-2BT9147nwj28u9ZFAcSwbV4KqsPwQUSRrwg8SWGNMyUlXbT6slsfXYXOHHsTY5qL-2Bs2cRUYdQdaAybqKiUK-2FtaeQ8z3KPj8yqDc5XYJCKSp9fjtgVcT633y01-2FB-2F33CiJlqFCVoRncFTlZodKD5T5-2BBuQBbrWVLXJoqnq3N6HCU2L8G5el-2BZ8TDgv-2FOnElB3nfNdrSIEVKVuCpMg-2FUCuHlw6x29d9XwpL9eoWq7pJE4eu3VN9l8wSMwaazQoTGGPV31JDwKy3DaHvdvfWFCpP0GA-3D">our research</a>, over three experiments, we showed 131 volunteers a video of a simulated crime, followed by a lineup of possible suspects. We found that the pupils of those volunteers who correctly identified the criminal became up to 32% larger when they looked at them compared to when they looked at the rest of the lineup. But those participants who identified the wrong person or didn’t choose anyone showed no changes in pupil size. Pupil size also didn’t change if the criminal wasn’t actually in the lineup, no matter what the volunteers decided.</p>
<p>Because pupil size changed only when volunteers correctly identified the criminal, this suggests the change could be a measure of how strong their recognition really was. It wasn’t just the result of them believing they had identified the right person.</p>
<p>This could be important because the strength of identification evidence can determine whether or not it is used in court. Judges are required to assess how strong the evidence is before deciding whether a jury should hear about it. The evidence can be considered weak if the witness only saw the suspect for a short time, in poor conditions (such as poor lighting) or if the witness knew the suspect. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/300092/original/file-20191104-88372-3i20ey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/300092/original/file-20191104-88372-3i20ey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=316&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/300092/original/file-20191104-88372-3i20ey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=316&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/300092/original/file-20191104-88372-3i20ey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=316&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/300092/original/file-20191104-88372-3i20ey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/300092/original/file-20191104-88372-3i20ey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/300092/original/file-20191104-88372-3i20ey.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Unreliable witness evidence.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/medium-shot-female-crime-victim-identifying-1312409870?src=bb4d419c-d13c-4331-9b95-543a125e636e-2-85">FrameStockFootages/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Identification <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1996-13285-001">can also be affected</a> by various factors including <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/acp.1463">stress</a>, how <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/M_MacLin/publication/232558797_Race_Arousal_Attention_Exposure_and_Delay_An_Examination_of_Factors_Moderating_Face_Recognition/links/0c96052e13371834dc000000/Race-Arousal-Attention-Exposure-and-Delay-An-Examination-of-Factors-Moderating-Face-Recognition.pdf">long ago the incident took place</a>, and the tendency for people to better remember faces of <a href="https://digitalcommons.utep.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=https://scholar.google.co.uk/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C5&q=own+race+bias&btnG=&httpsredir=1&article=1004&context=christian_meissner">their own race</a>. This helps explain why identification can be a flawed reason for a conviction. For example, in 2009 in the UK, DNA evidence was used to quash the robbery conviction of William Mills, which the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2009/aug/18/eyewitness-evidence-wrongful-conviction">presiding judge said</a> had been based on “eyewitness identification alone”.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, it seems unlikely that courts’ reliance on eyewitness identification evidence is going to change any time soon. But our research suggests pupillometry might provide a better way to measure the strength of this evidence, and potentially prevent weak identifications from being used to incorrectly convict people. </p>
<h2>Predictions may be possible</h2>
<p>We have also looked at whether it may be possible to predict whether or not a participant is likely to recognise a criminal or not by looking at the size of their pupils. Our initial (unpublished) data suggests this may be the case, especially if witnesses rate their memory of the criminal as very strong. </p>
<p>From our sample of 45 participants, those who said they remembered the criminal and correctly identified him had dramatic pupil size changes that reflected this strong memory. But those that claimed to remember him well but did not correctly identify him had no pupil changes at all. This suggested that their belief in their strong memory was misplaced.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, some participants who claimed they were guessing as they failed to make an identification still had pupil size changes when looking at the criminal. This suggested either that their strength of recognition was too low for them to be conscious of it, or that they did not make an identification for other reasons.</p>
<p>More research is needed to determine whether pupillometry could be used to support or augment current ways of assessing the strength of identification evidence. But we would argue that justice systems <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1350/ijep.8.2.100.36515?journalCode=epja">don’t pay enough attention</a> to neuroscientific research on memory. Perhaps pupillometry could provide a way of uniting psychological expertise and the law more closely when it comes to assessing the reliability of eyewitness identification.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/124203/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Initial research found witness pupils got bigger when correctly identifying a criminal.Camilla Elphick, Post Doctoral Research Associate in Psychology, The Open UniversityGraham Hole, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, University of SussexLucy Welsh, Senior Lecturer in Law, University of SussexLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1213152019-08-15T04:37:39Z2019-08-15T04:37:39ZHow do we identify human remains?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/287980/original/file-20190814-136213-18a7vdp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Forensic anthropologists, who analyse skeletal remains, can give us clues to how someone lived and died.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/download/confirm/191409731?src=D0qv97WXqaUyPpYimInq8g-1-0&size=medium_jpg">from www.shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The recent case of a surgical implant found <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-08-01/surgeon-says-orthopaedic-plate-inside-croc-of-human-origin/11373988">inside a Queensland crocodile</a> has highlighted the challenges forensic scientists face when trying to identify human remains without much evidence to go on.</p>
<p>Did the crocodile eat a human with a surgical implant? If so, could the implant — a metal plate and some screws — be used to identify the victim? Or did the implant come from a dog?</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/287940/original/file-20190814-9429-rhufp7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/287940/original/file-20190814-9429-rhufp7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/287940/original/file-20190814-9429-rhufp7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=409&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287940/original/file-20190814-9429-rhufp7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=409&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287940/original/file-20190814-9429-rhufp7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=409&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287940/original/file-20190814-9429-rhufp7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=514&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287940/original/file-20190814-9429-rhufp7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=514&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287940/original/file-20190814-9429-rhufp7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=514&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Recovered from the stomach of a crocodile: did this metal plate come from a human or dog?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.facebook.com/Kooranacrocodilefarm/photos/pcb.2416704585034919/2416704545034923/?type=3&theater">Koorana Crocodile Park</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Death by crocodile is reasonably rare. In the past decade, there have been about <a href="http://www.crocodile-attack.info/data/map">67 crocodile attacks</a> in Australia, a quarter of which were fatal.</p>
<p>Victim identification can be <a href="https://www.policemag.com/342035/animal-activity-and-the-crime-scene">impossible</a> in these cases, unless a body part with a <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/225219709_Unique_Characteristics_at_Autopsy_that_may_be_Useful_in_Identifying_Human_Remains">unique characteristic</a> is recovered, such as a medical device with a serial number. It’s just one of a range of potential techniques to put <a href="https://youtu.be/jVEkBNBt5vI">names and faces</a> to <a href="https://theconversation.com/australia-has-2-000-missing-persons-and-500-unidentified-human-remains-a-dedicated-lab-could-find-matches-90620">hundreds of unidentified human remains</a> in Australia.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/australia-has-2-000-missing-persons-and-500-unidentified-human-remains-a-dedicated-lab-could-find-matches-90620">Australia has 2,000 missing persons and 500 unidentified human remains – a dedicated lab could find matches</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Forensic examination of human remains is crucial to establish the person’s identity, and cause and manner of death. This way they can have a proper burial, families can get answers, death certificates can be issued and justice can be served.</p>
<p>It is essential for identifying <a href="https://theconversation.com/australia-has-2-000-missing-persons-and-500-unidentified-human-remains-a-dedicated-lab-could-find-matches-90620">missing persons</a>, <a href="https://www.interpol.int/content/download/589/file/18Y1344%20E%20DVI_Guide.pdf">disaster victims</a> and <a href="https://www.icrc.org/eng/assets/files/publications/icrc-002-4154.pdf">casualties of war</a>.</p>
<h2>The big three: fingerprints, teeth, DNA</h2>
<p>When human remains are recovered, <a href="https://www.interpol.int/en/content/download/5759/file/E%20DVI_Guide2018_Annexure12.pdf">three primary scientific methods</a> are traditionally used to identify who they belong to:</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.omicsonline.org/human-identification-and-fingerprints-a-review-2155-6180.1000123.php?aid=2581">fingerprint analysis</a>, which looks at the skin patterns on the tips of fingers</li>
<li><a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6503812/">dental analysis</a>, which looks at the teeth and any dental work, such as crowns and fillings</li>
<li><a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0379073818302986?via%3Dihub">DNA analysis</a>, which looks at DNA profiles recovered from soft or hard body tissues.</li>
</ul>
<p>This information can then be compared to a database of fingerprint, dental or DNA records.</p>
<h2>Implants and x-rays can also be useful</h2>
<p>The discovery of <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1556-4029.2010.01639.x">medical implants</a> during an autopsy can also be informative.</p>
<p>These include <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1556-4029.13598">prosthetic joints</a>, <a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/08/21/california.model.death/index.html">breast implants</a>, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23592022">pacemakers</a> or <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1556-4029.2009.01226.x">dental implants</a>. Investigators may be able to link these to patient records via their <a href="https://www.tga.gov.au/sites/default/files/devices-argmd-p2.docx">unique markings</a>, including a trade mark, date of manufacture and serial number. </p>
<p>In Australia, the <a href="https://aoanjrr.sahmri.com/home">Australian Orthopaedic Association National Joint Replacement Registry</a> and <a href="https://www.abdr.org.au/">Australian Breast Device Registry</a> collect and store information that can allow people who have had joint or breast surgery to be identified.</p>
<p>But there are no national registers of <a href="https://theconversation.com/assassination-by-pacemaker-australia-needs-to-do-more-to-regulate-internet-connected-medical-devices-83357">heart</a> or <a href="https://juniperpublishers.com/jfsci/pdf/JFSCI.MS.ID.555596.pdf">dental</a> implants. Such mandatory records would allow implants to be easily traced back to recipients or surgeons.</p>
<p>Forensic scientists can also <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15335591">compare medical images</a>, such as x-rays or CT scans, taken before and after death. </p>
<p>For head images, unique features such as the <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21320763">sinuses</a> or the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2212478016300065">arrangement and condition of the teeth</a> can be compared.</p>
<p>Body scans can also be used to look for rarer <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1556-4029.14117">skeletal features</a>, such as fractures, amputations or cancer lesions.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/287973/original/file-20190814-136176-1re0y3g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/287973/original/file-20190814-136176-1re0y3g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/287973/original/file-20190814-136176-1re0y3g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=361&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287973/original/file-20190814-136176-1re0y3g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=361&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287973/original/file-20190814-136176-1re0y3g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=361&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287973/original/file-20190814-136176-1re0y3g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=453&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287973/original/file-20190814-136176-1re0y3g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=453&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287973/original/file-20190814-136176-1re0y3g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=453&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Imaging such as x-rays can reveal fractures and surgical implants.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/high-quality-xray-collection-body-part-1030089916">from www.shutterstock.com</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>These scientific techniques, either individually or in combination, have been successfully used to identify large numbers of <a href="https://www.fsigenetics.com/article/S1872-4973(18)30419-8/fulltext">missing persons</a> or <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20832958">disaster victims</a>. </p>
<p>Computerisation, digitisation and miniaturisation of forensic technologies have further improved the identification process. Now, <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/20961790.2018.1521327">fingerprints</a>, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5734849/">teeth</a>, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-11-19/dna-testing-company-gets-call-to-help-id-california-fire-victims">DNA</a> and <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00414-019-02109-x">medical images</a> can be quickly and easily collected and searched in real time using portable instruments at the scenes of mass disasters.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-dental-records-will-help-identify-bodies-from-mh17-29535">How dental records will help identify bodies from MH17</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>But there are limits</h2>
<p>These methods are only as good as the information we have from when the person was alive. So if someone doesn’t have their fingerprints on file and hasn’t visited a dentist recently, or if close living relatives aren’t available to provide a DNA reference sample or they’ve never had a CT scan, these methods are likely to be useless. </p>
<p>And if a surgical implant doesn’t have unique markings (as in the case of the Queensland crocodile), it makes the task extremely difficult.</p>
<p>So forensic scientists need to explore other methods.</p>
<h2>Clues from tattoos and bones</h2>
<p>Distinctive physical features like <a href="http://www.exploreforensics.co.uk/scars-tattoos-and-birthmarks-in-identification.html">scars, birthmarks and body modifications</a> such as <a href="https://modificazione.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/body-modification-as-a-tool-to-aid-human-identification.pdf">tattoos</a> and <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15813550">piercings</a>, could help identify someone.</p>
<p>Custom tattoos helped identify the victim of the famous 1935 “<a href="https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/real-life/true-stories/how-severed-arm-regurgitated-by-tiger-shark-led-to-murder-mystery/news-story/183aa1246bdaa589cbc4b28965c04c1a">shark arm case</a>” and <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12024-013-9476-9">decomposing bodies</a> following the <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-12-24/boxing-day-tsunami-how-the-disaster-unfolded/5977568">2004 Boxing Day tsunami</a>.</p>
<p>A <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/20961790.2018.1523704">forensic anthropologist</a> can also study a set of skeletal remains to reveal a lot about that person when they were living — including their sex, ancestry, stature, age, disease and any fatal injuries. </p>
<p><a href="http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.896.6816&rep=rep1&type=pdf">Radiocarbon dating</a> of teeth and bone could tell us when that person was born and died. And the sample’s <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/20961790.2018.1549527">chemical signature</a> could indicate the region where they were born, lived for long periods or recently travelled. It can even identify what they ate.</p>
<p>Scientists can also <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4606364/">reconstruct a 3D image of someone’s face</a> if a skull is found. </p>
<h2>New DNA intelligence tools</h2>
<p>Beyond routine DNA testing to determine someone’s sex or relatives, more <a href="https://www.fsigenetics.com/article/S1872-4973(18)30193-5/abstract">novel DNA methods</a> are showing promise for piecing together an image of a missing person.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/288084/original/file-20190814-136217-plubcz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/288084/original/file-20190814-136217-plubcz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/288084/original/file-20190814-136217-plubcz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=902&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/288084/original/file-20190814-136217-plubcz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=902&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/288084/original/file-20190814-136217-plubcz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=902&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/288084/original/file-20190814-136217-plubcz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1134&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/288084/original/file-20190814-136217-plubcz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1134&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/288084/original/file-20190814-136217-plubcz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1134&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">New DNA tools can now predict someone’s physical appearance from a single bone.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/download/confirm/75447187?size=medium_jpg">from www.shutterstock.com</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>DNA can now be used to predict someone’s <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25716572">ancestry and hair, eye and skin colour</a>. But using DNA to accurately estimate <a href="https://www.karger.com/Article/FullText/486239">age</a> and <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30386375">facial features</a> is still some way off. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/jtes/dna-cold-case-crime-doe-project-genealogy">Forensic genetic genealogy</a> is also growing in popularity for identifying <a href="http://dnadoeproject.org/">Jane Does</a> (unidentified females). This is where investigators search a public DNA database of <a href="https://www.ancestry.com.au/">ancestry.com</a> results, looking for genetic links to the DNA from the remains.</p>
<p>Other countries may consider adopting this technique for their cases, as long as the database owners <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.2006906">allow law enforcement</a> agencies to keep using the data to identify people. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/is-your-genome-really-your-own-the-public-and-forensic-value-of-dna-95786">Is your genome really your own? The public and forensic value of DNA</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>The value of ‘body farms’</h2>
<p>Human taphonomic facilities, such as the <a href="https://www.uts.edu.au/about/faculty-science/after-facility/about-us">Australian Facility for Taphonomic Experimental Research</a>, study the science of how bodies decompose. These facilities, often called “<a href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/australian-mummies-body-farm-research-creates-puzzles-for-real-life-csi-20180802-p4zv28.html">body farms</a>”, are <a href="https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3486&context=gradschool_theses">important</a> for developing new forensic identification techniques. The techniques can be tested on donated human bodies before being used in forensic cases.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/this-is-going-to-affect-how-we-determine-time-since-death-how-studying-body-donors-in-the-bush-is-changing-forensic-science-117662">'This is going to affect how we determine time since death': how studying body donors in the bush is changing forensic science</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00450618.2018.1466535">best and most efficient way</a> to identify the remains of unknown and missing Australians involves combining expertise from a number of different branches of forensic science and coordinating these efforts nationally.</p>
<p>So for cases where fragments of human remains are found in the stomachs of <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/australasia/human-remains-found-in-crocodile-may-be-scot-961401.html">crocodiles</a>, <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/world/human-remains-found-in-tiger-sharks-belly-20100908-150ki.html">sharks</a> or some other human predator, investigators now have a toolkit of forensic techniques to choose from to identify the victim.</p>
<p>However, in this most recent case, the recovery of only an orthopaedic device has left forensic scientists with more questions than answers.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/121315/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jodie Ward does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>While forensic scientists mostly use fingerprints, dental records and DNA to identify human remains, they have many other techniques in their forensic toolkit. How many have you heard of?Jodie Ward, Director, Australian Facility for Taphonomic Experimental Research; Forensic DNA Identification Specialist, NSW Health Pathology; Associate Professor, Centre for Forensic Science, University of Technology SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1167142019-05-17T10:43:45Z2019-05-17T10:43:45ZWhy is the Pentagon interested in UFOs?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/274689/original/file-20190515-60570-107evqb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=1%2C0%2C1196%2C1187&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">An apparently unidentified object detected on a Navy plane's infrared camera.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.navytimes.com/news/your-navy/2018/03/13/video-shows-apparent-encounter-between-navy-pilot-and-ufo/">U.S. Department of Defense/Navy Times</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="https://www.politico.com/story/2019/04/23/us-navy-guidelines-reporting-ufos-1375290">U.S. Navy pilots and sailors</a> won’t be considered crazy for reporting unidentified flying objects, under new rules meant to encourage them to keep track of what they see. Yet just a few years ago, the Pentagon reportedly shut down another official <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/16/us/politics/pentagon-program-ufo-harry-reid.html">program that investigated UFO sightings</a>. What has changed? Is the U.S. military finally coming around to the idea that alien spacecraft are visiting our planet?</p>
<p>The answer to that question is almost certainly no. Humans’ misinterpretation of observations of natural phenomena are as old as time and include examples such as <a href="https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2014/11/141124-manatee-awareness-month-dugongs-animals-science/">manatees being seen as mermaids</a> and <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2845102/The-LOG-Ness-Monster-Woodland-Trust-claim-recent-burst-sightings-driftwood.html">driftwood in a Scottish loch</a> being interpreted as a monster. A more recent and relevant example is the <a href="https://www.popsci.com/spacex-launch-look-strange-alien">strange luminescent structure in the sky</a> caused by a SpaceX rocket launch. In these types of cases, incorrect interpretations occur because people have incomplete information or misunderstand what they’re seeing.</p>
<p>Based on my prior experience as a <a href="https://news.engin.umich.edu/2017/12/professor-iain-boyd-receives-usaf-chief-of-staff-award-for-exceptional-public-service/">science advisor to the Air Force</a>, I believe that the Pentagon wants to avoid this type of confusion, so it needs to better understand flying objects that it can’t now identify. During a military mission, whether in peace or in war, if a pilot or soldier can’t identify an object, they have a serious problem: How should they react, without knowing if it is neutral, friendly or threatening? Fortunately, the military can use advanced technologies to try to identify strange things in the sky.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/wxVRg7LLaQA?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">What is this object?</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Taking the ‘U’ out of ‘UFO’</h2>
<p>“Situational awareness” is the military term for having complete understanding of the environment in which you are operating. A UFO represents a gap in situational awareness. At the moment, when a <a href="https://www.navytimes.com/news/your-navy/2018/03/13/video-shows-apparent-encounter-between-navy-pilot-and-ufo/">Navy pilot sees something strange during flight</a>, just about the only thing he or she can do is ask other pilots and air traffic control what they saw in that place at that time. Globally, the <a href="https://www.statista.com/chart/8452/ufo-sightings-are-at-record-heights/">number of UFO reportings in a year</a> has peaked at more than 8,000. It’s not known how many the military experiences.</p>
<p>Even the most <a href="https://www.explorescu.org/papers/nimitz_strike_group_2004">heavily documented incidents</a> end up unresolved, despite interviewing <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/the-military-keeps-encountering-ufos-why-doesnt-the-pentagon-care/2018/03/09/242c125c-22ee-11e8-94da-ebf9d112159c_story.html">dozens of witnesses</a> and reviewing many written documents, as well as lots of audio and video recordings. </p>
<p>UFOs represent an opportunity for the military to improve its identification processes. At least some of that work could be done in the future by automated systems, and potentially in real time as an incident unfolds. Military vehicles – Humvees, battleships, airplanes and satellites alike – are covered in sensors. It’s not just passive devices like radio receivers, video cameras and infrared imagers, but active systems like radar, sonar and lidar. In addition, a military vehicle is rarely alone – vehicles travel in convoys, sail in fleets and fly in formations. Above them all are satellites watching from overhead.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/274692/original/file-20190515-60541-nvu3m0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/274692/original/file-20190515-60541-nvu3m0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/274692/original/file-20190515-60541-nvu3m0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=261&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/274692/original/file-20190515-60541-nvu3m0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=261&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/274692/original/file-20190515-60541-nvu3m0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=261&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/274692/original/file-20190515-60541-nvu3m0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=328&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/274692/original/file-20190515-60541-nvu3m0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=328&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/274692/original/file-20190515-60541-nvu3m0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=328&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Military vehicles bristle with antennas, cameras and sensors of all kinds.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://asc.army.mil/web/portfolio-item/iews-prophet/">U.S. Army</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Drawing a complete picture</h2>
<p>Sensors can provide a wealth of information on UFOs including range, speed, heading, shape, size and temperature. With so many sensors and so much data, though, it is a challenge to merge the information into something useful. However, the military is stepping up its work on <a href="https://aida.mitre.org/top-10-technology-areas/">autonomy and artificial intelligence</a>. One possible use of these new technologies could be to combine them to analyze all the many signals as they come in from sensors, separating any observations that it can’t identify. In those cases, the system could even assign sensors on nearby vehicles or orbiting satellites to collect additional information in real time. Then it could assemble an even more complete picture.</p>
<p>For the moment, though, people will need to weigh in on what all the data reveal. That’s because a key challenge for any successful use of artificial intelligence is building trust or confidence in the system. For example, in a <a href="https://www.popsci.com/byzantine-science-deceiving-artificial-intelligence">famous experiment by Google scientists</a>, an advanced image recognition algorithm based on artificial intelligence was fooled into wrongly identifying a photo of a panda as a gibbon simply by distorting a small number of the original pixels.</p>
<p>So, until humans understand UFOs better, we won’t be able to teach computers about them. In my view, the <a href="https://www.livescience.com/65387-navy-ufo-sightings.html">Navy’s new approach</a> to reporting UFO encounters is a good first step. This may eventually lead to a comprehensive, fully integrated approach for object identification involving the fusion of data from many sensors through the application of artificial intelligence and autonomy. Only then will there be fewer and fewer UFOs in the sky – because they won’t be unidentified anymore.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/116714/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Iain Boyd is a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the American Physical Society, and the Royal Aeronautical Society. He is a paid consultant for several organizations, both non-profit and for-profit.</span></em></p>During a military mission, whether in peace or in war, the inability to identify an object within an area of operation represents a significant problem.Iain Boyd, Professor of Aerospace Engineering, University of MichiganLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/713282017-01-17T00:33:12Z2017-01-17T00:33:12ZLet’s kill the Australian identity card zombie once and for all<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152812/original/image-20170116-16920-1rigjbw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Pauline Hanson's One Nation has suggested a national identity card.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AAP/Sarah Motherwell</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Some policies are like zombies – toxic, frightening, defiantly unkillable. They reappear, even though they aren’t useful and aren’t pretty. Pauline Hanson’s call for a <a href="http://www.onenation.com.au/policies/identity-proof">national identity card</a> is one of those zombies.</p>
<p>The One Nation leader has been <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-09-15/pauline-hanson-maiden-speech-2016/7847136">calling</a> for a networked biometric card for people who interact with the national government. Put simply, that is most citizens. The card will supposedly significantly reduce fraud by non-citizens who are resident in Australia. </p>
<p>Statements about the card are <a href="http://www.9news.com.au/national/2017/01/13/05/32/pauline-hanson-calling-for-national-id-card">confusing</a>. Presumably it is meant also to reduce entitlement fraud by citizens – a focus of the current Centrelink <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-01-12/government-knew-of-potential-problems-with-centrelink-system/8177988">debacle</a> – and provide definitive proof of identity in dealing with state or local government and the private sector. </p>
<p>Past enthusiasts for a national <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2195493">identity card</a>, claiming “if you have done nothing wrong you have nothing to fear”, have suggested a “must carry” regime. People would be expected to take the card with them when they use public transport, walk the dog, visit granny, go shopping or otherwise step outside. The card would be the default proof of identity in private sector transactions, stronger than the <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-02-26/identity-fraud-bust-sydney-afp-nsw-police/6263366">easily forged</a> driver licence photo cards that are the standard ID for most adults.</p>
<p>The proposal may be good politics – a timely diversion from Hanson’s very public tendency to <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-01-08/one-nation-pauline-hanson-dumps-anti-gay-candidate-shan-ju-lin/8168388">lose candidates</a> – but it is unviable. Just as importantly, it is contrary to the dignity we are entitled to as members of a liberal democratic state. On that basis we must hope government ministers looking for a quick policy fix do not cynically embrace the idea. </p>
<p>What would the Hanson card look like? At this stage its operation is unclear, other than it would apparently involve a photo, name/birthdate, digital fingerprint (a unique biometric identifier) and link to multiple official databases. It would be a single key to “health, education and welfare”.</p>
<p>As a national <a href="https://theconversation.com/iris-scanners-can-now-identify-us-from-40-feet-away-42141">biometric</a> scheme the card would involve all adults registering their fingerprints. Infrastructure for that registration does not exist – the Commonwealth would presumably have to co-opt state driver registries. Its operation would not be cheap. </p>
<p>Would the card work? Aside from the affront to human dignity, such a card is unlikely to substantially reduce the incidence and severity of entitlement fraud (for example, unemployment, disability, health and other fraud by citizens and people pretending to be citizens). </p>
<p>The cost of national registration, databases and data-sharing mechanisms required to set up and maintain the card would dwarf the fraud likely to be identified and recovered. The Australian government has not been very good at establishing multi-purpose population-scale systems. Recall the recent <a href="https://theconversation.com/root-of-census-failures-say-badly-done-ibm-and-abs-still-down-for-some-63845">census</a> debacle, revelations about major problems with Centrelink, obfuscation about the national e-health scheme that saw <a href="https://theconversation.com/unfixable-time-to-ditch-personally-controlled-e-health-record-scheme-19834">the Personally Controlled E-Health Record scheme</a> become MyHR, and criticisms about operation of the <a href="http://www.computerworld.com.au/article/344251/auditor_gives_fail_24_8m_document_verification_service_/">national Document Verification Service</a> and <a href="https://www.anao.gov.au/work/performance-audit/management-aviation-and-maritime-security-identification-card-schemes">maritime/aviation</a> identity card schemes. </p>
<p>A “must carry” requirement appears to be unconstitutional. We are not at war (arguably the only situation that would allow mandatory “registration and display”). Few Australians would be happy to face criminal sanctions if they forgot to carry the card or refused to show it to a range of officials. </p>
<p>Some people may be comforted by the idea that everyone would be required to carry – and display – a <a href="https://www.wired.com/2016/03/biometrics-coming-along-serious-security-concerns/">biometric</a> card, an instance of magical thinking. Others will either be disillusioned or relish the thought that the magic card is a tool for a variety of scams in the private sector, where most <a href="https://www.ag.gov.au/RightsAndProtections/IdentitySecurity/Pages/Trends-in-Identity-Crime.aspx">identity offences</a> occur. When we read court reports, for example, we can see that crooks are just as good at <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/national/buying-counterfeit-medicare-cards-no-questions-asked-20160610-gpgj1v.html">manufacturing</a> birth certificates, credit cards and driver licence cards as the organisations responsible for those identity documents.</p>
<p>Many business will weigh risk, choosing convenience over the costs of rigorous authentication. Few Australians have substantial forensic skills. We’ll accordingly see quite a few fake Hanson cards if the One Nation scheme gets off the ground. </p>
<p>In her 2016 maiden speech, Hanson <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-09-15/pauline-hanson-maiden-speech-2016/7847136">said</a>: “I will not accept do-gooders complaining about people’s privacy.” </p>
<p>Despite the prime minister’s stirring advocacy of privacy in his 2012 <a href="http://www.malcolmturnbull.com.au/media/free-at-last-or-freedom-lost-liberty-in-the-digital-age-2012-alfred-deakin">Deakin Lecture</a>, the government (along with the opposition) has been reluctant to respect <a href="https://theconversation.com/its-time-for-privacy-invasion-to-be-a-legal-wrong-31288">privacy</a> and has ignored the “do-gooders”. The most effective opposition to the Hanson card is unlikely to come from the Law Council, law societies and civil society advocates. It is instead likely to come from the Department of Finance.</p>
<p>In recalling the <a href="http://www.naa.gov.au/collection/explore/cabinet/by-year/1984-85/australia-card.aspx">Australia Card</a>, that department is likely to be wary about poorly contained costs, inevitable project creep and the ambitions of competing departments. It has a healthy disrespect for grandiose silver bullet proposals. It has a realism about the prospects for getting the competing immigration, health, education and welfare empires to integrate their databases in ways that deliver timely and accurate results. And the Finance Department is more powerful than decorative bodies such the <a href="https://www.oaic.gov.au/">Office of the Australian Information Commissioner</a>.</p>
<p>Finance’s project management analysts, rather than legal “do-gooders”, may save us from the card. Let’s hope someone kills that zombie once and for all.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/71328/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Bruce Baer Arnold does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>One Nation’s proposed national identity card is unviable and likely unconstitutional, so should not be entertained.Bruce Baer Arnold, Assistant Professor, School of Law, University of CanberraLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/675712016-11-07T08:41:10Z2016-11-07T08:41:10ZHow an army of ‘super recognisers’ could help spot criminals and missing persons<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/144676/original/image-20161105-27925-1m9vwbk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">How keen is your eye?</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-427926511/stock-photo-closeup-of-womans-face-with-digital-pattern.html?src=Juv9wH-f9_oVBB2TWwXleA-1-63">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>While most of us find it easy to recognise highly familiar faces such as those of family and friends, identifying faces that we have only briefly encountered is much more difficult. In fact, some research suggests that even experienced passport control officers <a href="http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0103510">make a large number of errors</a> when matching faces to identity documents. Yet, recent work reveals that a small number of people may have extraordinary face recognition skills, outperforming typical people on a range of face recognition tasks.</p>
<p>These so-called “super recognisers” have an uncanny ability to recognise faces, remembering people they have not seen for decades, who have substantially changed in appearance, and who <a href="http://www.prosopagnosiaresearch.org/about/super-recognition">they have only fleetingly encountered</a>. Some super recognisers have even been accused of stalking because the person that they recognised did not reciprocate the familiarity.</p>
<p>It is currently unknown how many people truly have superior face recognition skills. Popular tests assess participants’ ability to recognise photographs of celebrities that were taken a long time before they became famous. While these “before they were famous” tests are certainly fun to complete, it is very difficult to control for participants’ previous exposure to each celebrity. </p>
<p>A more reliable option is to assess performance on computerised tests that require participants to memorise faces and to later recall them. The number of correct responses can then be compared to the average score achieved by people with typical face recognition skills. This statistical procedure simply identifies the top 2% of the population – meaning that <a href="http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01378/full">one in 50 people are currently classed as super recognisers</a>.</p>
<p>Recent research carried out at Bournemouth University investigated whether these people are actually processing faces in a different manner to the rest of the population. It has long been known that the optimal way to process faces involves the use of a “configural” or “holistic” processing strategy. </p>
<p>This involves seeing faces as a whole, taking account of all of the facial features and the spacing between them. Interestingly, all of the super recogniser participants displayed heightened configural processing <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0010945216301186">on at least one task</a>. We also monitored their eye movements as they looked at faces. While control participants mostly looked at the eyes, super recognisers spent <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17470218.2016.1161059">more time looking at the nose</a>. It is possible that this more central viewing position promotes the optimal configural processing strategy.</p>
<h2>What makes a super recogniser?</h2>
<p>We also examined the potential causes of super recognition, finding no evidence that these people have higher intelligence levels or excel at all visual or memory tasks. In fact, their superior ability is restricted only to the recognition of faces. It currently seems that some people are simply predisposed to developing this skill, and there is <a href="http://www.pnas.org/content/107/11/5238.short">increasing evidence that face recognition skills are heritable</a>. Twin studies report a higher correlation in face recognition ability for identical compared to non-identical twins, and disorders of face recognition – <a href="http://www.prosopagnosiaresearch.org/index/information">prosopagnosia or face blindness</a> are known to run in families, too.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/144675/original/image-20161105-27911-fadmw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/144675/original/image-20161105-27911-fadmw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144675/original/image-20161105-27911-fadmw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144675/original/image-20161105-27911-fadmw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144675/original/image-20161105-27911-fadmw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144675/original/image-20161105-27911-fadmw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/144675/original/image-20161105-27911-fadmw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Spotting a face in the crowd.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-229320925/stock-photo-city-commuters-high-key-blurred-image-of-people-walking-in-the-street-unrecognizable-faces.html?src=Juv9wH-f9_oVBB2TWwXleA-1-17">Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Another important finding is that some people seem to be superior at specific face recognition tasks. For instance, while some of our super recognisers were excellent at remembering faces, others had typical face memory skills yet were extremely good at deciding whether pairs of simultaneously presented faces were of the same person or two different people. A further skill that has not yet been tested is the “spotting” of faces in a crowd. Many super recognisers claim to be particularly proficient at this task, and it is possible that some people may be “super spotters” yet not excel at other tasks.</p>
<p>The possibility that there are different subtypes of super recognition is particularly important when considering the applied value of this research. Passport control is one clear candidate for the use of super recognisers, and many policing scenarios would also benefit. Super recognisers might assist with the matching of faces captured on CCTV footage, the comparison of faces to identification documents, or the scanning of crowds for known troublemakers, wanted perpetrators or even missing persons. </p>
<p>They may also help with victim identification, or deciding whether a person moving between borders is using a fraudulent identity or is even a missing child. There may not be enough super recognisers to fill all these tasks in all locations, particularly given different individuals may be needed for different jobs, but an elite team of super recognisers could be deployed in times of need. </p>
<p>There has already been some movement towards this ideal, and certain police forces are now working with academics to <a href="http://whatworks.college.police.uk/About/News/Pages/Facial_recognition.aspx">screen their officers for super recognition</a>. Like many sectors, security and policing agencies are increasingly being assisted by technological advances. However, the discovery of super recognisers presents a refreshing example of how a previously untapped human aptitude can make a real difference to local, national and global security.</p>
<p><em>If you think you are a super recogniser, you can register to participate in research <a href="http://www.prosopagnosiaresearch.org/index/register">here</a>.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/67571/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sarah Bate does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Some people have a remarkable aptitude for recognising a face – are you one of them?Sarah Bate, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, Bournemouth UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/638872016-08-17T20:22:33Z2016-08-17T20:22:33ZCan photos on social media lead to mistaken identity in court cases?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/134071/original/image-20160815-15277-1fyiuqn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">What face do you see?</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock/Zurijeta</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>When it comes to identifying someone allegedly involved in a crime there can be risks associated with seeing photos of people on Facebook and other social media, as the recent case involving convicted killer Adrian Bayley highlights.</p>
<p>Bayley was arrested in 2012 for the rape and murder of ABC journalist Jill Meagher. He later <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-04-05/adrian-bayley-pleads-guilty-to-jill-meagher-murder/4611058">pleaded guilty in 2013</a> and was sentenced to a minimum term of 35 years.</p>
<p>In 2014 and 2015, Bayley was <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/adrian-bayley-found-guilty-of-raping-three-women-before-he-raped-and-murdered-jill-meagher-20150320-1m3otn.html">found guilty of raping three other women</a>. The first incident was alleged to have taken place in 2000 and the other two were in 2012, only months before he killed Meagher.</p>
<p>As a result of these new convictions his sentence was extended so he was <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-05-28/adrian-bayley-minimum-prison-term-extended-10-years-over-rapes/6502986">ineligible for parole until 2058</a>.</p>
<h2>Beyond reasonable doubt?</h2>
<p>But last month, the Victorian Court of Appeal <a href="http://www.supremecourt.vic.gov.au/home/law+and+practice/judgments+and+sentences/judgment+summaries/judgment+summary+bayley+v+the+queen">overturned one of Bayley’s new convictions</a> and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/jul/13/jill-meagher-murderer-adrian-bayleys-jail-term-cut-by-three-years-on-appeal">cut his minimum sentence by three years</a>.</p>
<p>The victim of the attack in 2000, identified as GH to protect her identity, was a sex worker at the time.</p>
<p>The prosecution alleged that Bayley had picked up GH in his car, punched her to the side of her face and then sexually assaulted her. Bayley’s defence was that it wasn’t him, and the victim had made a mistake in identifying him as her attacker.</p>
<p>She initially identified Bayley during the media storm surrounding Meagher’s death, 12 years after her attack. She was on Facebook and saw a missing persons page for Meagher when, <a href="http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/cases/vic/VSCA/2016/160.html">according to her evidence</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>[…] all of a sudden I’ve seen Adrian Bayley’s face and I knew, a hundred percent, that’s my guy.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Police then conducted a formal photo board procedure with her and showed her a board with around 12 photographs on it, one of which was Bayley. She positively identified him again during that procedure.</p>
<p>At trial, <a href="http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/cases/vic/VCC/2015/698.html">the jury accepted GH’s evidence and convicted Bayley</a>. He then appealed to the Court of Appeal, arguing that no reasonable jury could have found him guilty beyond reasonable doubt.</p>
<p>His argument was that the initial circumstances of the victim identifying him via Facebook were too unreliable, and that the later ID by police was therefore unreliable as well.</p>
<h2>The displacement effect</h2>
<p><a href="http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/cases/vic/VSCA/2016/160.html">The appeal court agreed</a>, saying there was too great a risk that her ID was tainted by a phenomenon known as the displacement effect.</p>
<p>This effect is one of the ways in which post-event information can change how we remember an event happening, our brains subconsciously tricking our memory.</p>
<p>The American cognitive psychologist Elizabeth Loftus, <a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2013/05/18/health/lifeswork-loftus-memory-malleability/">famous for her research on false memories</a>, has shown that hearing someone else describe a person a particular way can then <a href="https://webfiles.uci.edu/eloftus/LoftusGreeneLHB1980.pdf?uniq=rseqtl">cause us to describe that person the same way</a>, even if that description isn’t accurate.</p>
<p>The displacement effect more specifically involves visual misinformation: seeing a person after an event (in a photo, video or real life), linking them to that event for some reason, and then falsely remembering them as having been involved.</p>
<p>Imagine, for example, that you see a fight outside your local pub one night. You don’t know anyone who was involved, but police want to interview you to see if you can identify anyone. You agree to attend the police station in a day or so.</p>
<p>Before you go into the police station, a friend comes over to your house, opens up their Facebook app on their phone, and shows you images of who they believe was involved in the fight.</p>
<p>From the moment that you see that photo, there is a risk – not a guarantee, but definitely a risk – that you have superimposed the face from that photo into your memory of the fight.</p>
<p>You might now confidently remember the person from the photo as being the person involved in the fight. And you might be right. The problem is that because you were expecting to see the culprit, your mind might have altered your memory without you realising it.</p>
<p>Our memory is <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/03/memory-is-not-a-recording-device-the-science-of-remembering/253881/">not a perfect recording device</a>. The displacement effect, a process whereby a new face is displaced onto an old memory, is like our brain Photoshopping our memory.</p>
<h2>Facebook and the displacement effect</h2>
<p>Prior to Facebook becoming such a daily part of our lives, the displacement effect wasn’t a huge problem. We didn’t have access to mass databases of photographs of people we may or may not know.</p>
<p>But that’s all changed through social media. We now have access to photos of friends, photos of friends of friends as well as photos of strangers. There are exponentially more opportunities for us to go on our own amateur investigation and try to find the culprit.</p>
<p>This means that eyewitness identifications might be even more unreliable than ever, already accounting for <a href="http://www.innocenceproject.org/causes/eyewitness-misidentification/">more than two-thirds of wrongful convictions</a> in the United States alone.</p>
<p>Courts need to be extra careful to scrutinise the circumstances in which someone has identified an accused. If the initial identification took place under suggestive circumstances, such as a witness trawling Facebook in the hopes of identifying the offender, their identification may not reach the standard needed to be used as evidence.</p>
<p>Using Facebook to find a culprit can be a double-edged sword, then. It offers us an entirely new way to identify who committed the crime, but it may be that the evidence becomes unusable in the process.</p>
<p>The circumstances in which the displacement effect will pose a particularly dangerous risk are when we actively try to find the person. The reason this is particularly dangerous is because, at least in part, we are expecting to succeed.</p>
<p>So a word of caution. Police have special procedures in place that help minimise the risk of mistakes during identifications. If you see a crime, don’t look at Facebook or other social media until you’ve had a chance to work with police. Otherwise you might end up doing more harm than good.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/63887/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dr Paul McGorrery does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>There’s a concern that images posted on social media run the risk of disrupting the accurate identification of people allegedly involved in a crime.Dr Paul McGorrery, PhD Candidate (Criminal Law), Deakin UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/328122014-10-20T01:55:37Z2014-10-20T01:55:37ZFacial recognition is possible even if part of the face is covered<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/62065/original/pryv6bxp-1413526626.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">You don't need to see the whole face to identify someone.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/anabadili/3482163995">Flickr/craig</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The need to accurately identify people is important for security (and for not embarrassing yourself by hugging strangers). It was cited as the main reason for excluding and restricting the movements of individuals wearing religious head and face coverings in <a href="theconversation.com/abbott-intervenes-on-parliment-burqa-segregation-32438">public spaces</a>.</p>
<p>A plan to make Muslim women wearing facial coverings sit in glassed enclosures at Parliament House has been <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/controversial-parliament-house-burqa-ban-dumped-20141020-118j5h.html#ixzz3GdP9JOrZ">dropped</a> but the question remains: how good are we at identifying people from their facial features?</p>
<p>A large body of psychological research has shown that unfamiliar face matching is <a href="http://www.subcity.org/shows/headlights/d52de/">error-prone</a>. But does it make a difference if the person we are trying to identify has some features covered?</p>
<h2>Identification and facial features</h2>
<p>It is obvious that coverings that obscure most of the face, such as the burqa, are likely to be a problem for identification. But coverings such as the headscarf or hijab tend only to hide external features, obscuring face shape, ears and the hair line.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/62173/original/d9g6pbwr-1413760456.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/62173/original/d9g6pbwr-1413760456.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/62173/original/d9g6pbwr-1413760456.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/62173/original/d9g6pbwr-1413760456.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/62173/original/d9g6pbwr-1413760456.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/62173/original/d9g6pbwr-1413760456.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/62173/original/d9g6pbwr-1413760456.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/62173/original/d9g6pbwr-1413760456.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Some facial coverings can make identification difficult.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/jpstjohn/7705699222">Flickr/John St John</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><a href="http://www.loreto.herts.sch.uk/wp-content/uploads/Bruce.pdf">Studies</a> have compared people’s ability to match two images of a face when only internal facial features are shown, such as in these <a href="http://www.frontiersin.org/files/Articles/36240/fpsyg-03-00604-HTML/image_m/fpsyg-03-00604-g001.jpg">images</a>, to when all features are shown. </p>
<p>Results suggest that identification accuracy is increased when only internal features are available - that is, the presence of external features can actually hinder identification. Perhaps we should all wear headscarves to improve identification.</p>
<p>The external features of the face, particularly hair line, can be easily changed and so may not form a good basis for identification. Importantly, <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0084754">recent research</a> shows that faces shown with a headscarf are rated as more similar looking than those without.</p>
<p>This suggests that the headscarf seems to affect perceptions of faces even when people are directed to focus only on the internal features of the face.</p>
<h2>Cultural differences in facial recognition</h2>
<p><a href="http://kar.kent.ac.uk/26211/">Work</a> by psychologists <a href="http://www.qu.edu.qa/education/profiles/dr_megreya.php">Ahmed Megreya</a> and <a href="http://www.kent.ac.uk/psychology/people/bindemannm/">Markus Bindemann</a> has also found differences in performance for Westerners (British University students in their studies) and people from Middle Eastern cultures (they looked at Egyptians).</p>
<p>People from cultures where head covering is common actually did better at identifying others both with and without the coverings in place. </p>
<p>This effect has been likened to the cross-race effect, where people are better at identifying individuals from their own racial group. Both effects suggest that our perceptions of identity are heavily determined by our experience.</p>
<p>The implications of this research are that we can improve our ability to identify others from their face. The hard part is working out how.</p>
<h2>Other factors have bigger impact</h2>
<p>The headscarf is one thing, but what about extreme appearance changes caused by ageing, weight loss or gain and plastic surgery?</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/d0xAbZoS1nY?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Can you identify the adult at the end as the child at the beginning?</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Age-related changes in facial appearance are particularly problematic for identification.</p>
<p>Children who are the subject of custody orders or who may be reported as missing can easily go undetected by authorities, because the images possessed by authorities rarely match their appearance.</p>
<p>Despite popular depictions of forensic artists producing accurate “aged” images for identification, there is very little scientific research into the accuracy of these and other forms of image-based identification. At the moment, research into the impact of ageing on identification accuracy is a major priority.</p>
<p>On the issue of weight loss or gain and plastic surgery, passport officers are trained to pay attention to these factors as potential sources of identification errors. But we have no data to determine whether or not this training is effective.</p>
<h2>Refocus from external to internal features</h2>
<p>Some researchers have shown that when people focus on internal features during identification tasks they can improve accuracy.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/62184/original/s3fyzfwc-1413765492.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/62184/original/s3fyzfwc-1413765492.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=439&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/62184/original/s3fyzfwc-1413765492.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=439&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/62184/original/s3fyzfwc-1413765492.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=439&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/62184/original/s3fyzfwc-1413765492.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=552&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/62184/original/s3fyzfwc-1413765492.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=552&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/62184/original/s3fyzfwc-1413765492.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=552&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The focus is on the inner face.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/andrewmorrell/1133366858">Flickr/Andrew Morrell</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Psychologist Kingsley Fletcher and his colleagues tracked the <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1348/000712607X235872/abstract">eye movements</a> of people as they tried to match the identity of unfamiliar faces. They found that focusing on internal features was moderately correlated with identification performance.</p>
<p>But other research has shown that eye movements are highly idiosyncratic and bear no relationship with identification accuracy. To use a well-worn statement, more research is needed.</p>
<p>An even bigger improvement in face-matching accuracy comes from giving people immediate feedback about their decisions. To make an improvement, this feedback needs to point out when a correct decision has been made but also when an incorrect decision has been made and what the decision should have been.</p>
<p>This type of training can improve identification accuracy in people with low aptitude. But we have only a single study that has not been replicated. As yet we don’t know how long the improvement lasts.</p>
<p>Given the lack of research, it is certainly not yet time to make recommendations about how we should change the procedures used by security staff.</p>
<p>So citing security as a reason for restricting the wearing of head coverings is not entirely supported by psychological research into face matching. In fact, the data tend to support the opposite conclusion!</p>
<p>But why let a bit of data get in the way of a political view?</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/32812/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Carolyn Semmler has received funding from the Australian Research Council and the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet's research funding for National Security program.</span></em></p>The need to accurately identify people is important for security (and for not embarrassing yourself by hugging strangers). It was cited as the main reason for excluding and restricting the movements of…Carolyn Semmler, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, University of AdelaideLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/315882014-09-12T05:29:44Z2014-09-12T05:29:44ZThe keys may be on your fingertips, but that doesn’t mean biometric locks can’t be picked<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/58817/original/q3s6vrqs-1410453273.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Keys at your fingertips, but the technology isn't there yet.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fingerprint_scanner_identification.jpg">Rachmaninoff</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>How can we ensure that someone is who they say they are? How can be sure that the person in our system, both digitally speaking or physically in front of us, is who whom they claim to be?</p>
<p>You may think that a good password is the answer, but with so many ways to break into a computer system these methods are clearly not always effective – as can be seen from the unfortunate hacked celebrities whose <a href="https://theconversation.com/three-ways-your-personal-photos-are-vulnerable-to-hackers-31134">naked pictures were strewn across the internet</a> recently, or the <a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-is-your-iphone-at-risk-after-the-oleg-pliss-hack-27288">Oleg Pliss</a> ransomware that locks iPhones until the extortioner is paid. Even a combination of a good username and password may not be enough.</p>
<h2>An organic alternative to passwords</h2>
<p>What about biometrics? This technology uses human physical attributes as locks and keys, such as fingerprints, iris scans or, as is now suggested, the <a href="http://news.sky.com/story/1330620/barclays-finger-vein-scanner-game-changing">veins in the human fingertip</a>, making them highly individual ways to identify one user from another.</p>
<p>Using biometrics is not especially new. For example, while the likes of <a href="http://www.theverge.com/2013/5/2/4270352/theyre-already-watching-the-scary-new-technology-of-iris-scanners">iris scanners</a> may be familiar from sci-fi films, they’re also (or were <a href="http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/02/17/iris_scanners_scrapped_at_two_airports/">until recently</a>) found in real life airports too. Often mistakenly called retinal scanners, they are based on scanning the unique pattern of the iris, the coloured part of the eye. </p>
<p>But the technology needed to complete an effective and trusted scan is expensive and can be <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-18997580">tricked</a> by technologically capable hackers. These are great for entry control systems on the buildings of large organisations, or for the occasional secret bunker seen in films. But they are extremely costly – prohibitively so if a bank was to insist that every customer had one at home – and false readings become a problem as the number of people using it scales.</p>
<p>On the other hand, fingerprint technology has become cheaper and more available – fingerprint scanners are now sufficiently small and accurate that they started appearing in <a href="http://www.technewsworld.com/story/37017.html">laptops</a> 10 years ago, and are even in small <a href="http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5883">devices like the iPhone 5S</a>. This is one way that banks could allow smartphone and laptop users to access their financial services, with users presenting a finger rather than a passcode.</p>
<p>In fact it’s easy to obtain a range of low-cost scanners for all sorts of authentication uses. But that doesn’t mean the users will like doing so – there are ethical issues to consider, as some UK schools discovered in 2012 when their use of fingerprint scanners to <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/9764739/Schools-banned-from-fingerprinting-pupils.html">monitor pupil attendance</a> led to an outcry and a government ban without explicit consent from parents.</p>
<h2>Weaknesses and workarounds</h2>
<p>Despite our fingerprints all being unique, there is still the possibility to fool the systems used to protect secured buildings, large computer systems or financial institutions. There are well known ways to get around fingerprint biometric authentication, from <a href="http://www.theregister.co.uk/2002/05/16/gummi_bears_defeat_fingerprint_sensors/">creating false fingers (with prints) from gelatin</a>, using good quality <a href="http://9to5mac.com/2013/09/22/biometrics-hacking-team-uses-photographed-fingerprint-to-get-past-touch-id/">photographs or even a photocopy of fingerprints</a> to fool scanners, or most upsettingly simply <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4396831.stm">removing a finger</a> from those with access rights. These and others are <a href="http://www.networkworld.com/article/2293129/data-center/120606-10-ways-to-beat-fingerprint-biometrics.html">well known</a>, in real life and in the semi-fictional world of Hollywood.</p>
<p>Barclays’ recent decision to use a <a href="http://news.sky.com/story/1330620/barclays-finger-vein-scanner-game-changing">finger vein</a> scanner, which scans and pattern-matches the unique structure of the blood vessels in the finger. This has the benefit of only working when the finger is attached to the rest of the body and blood is flowing, which rules out the most grisly workarounds.</p>
<p>Facial recognition has been available for a while, and as the majority of computers now come with webcams included this would seem a logical step. The challenge is that the software making the decisions is very sensitive to environmental conditions such as light and darkness. We don’t all look our best for the camera all of the time, and the need for our real face to match the reference version the system is using means that, while a human would recognise the same person, a computer algorithm often can’t. This is why the killjoys at the UK Home Office and elsewhere <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3541444.stm">refuse to let us smile in passport photos</a> these days. But this same fact means that it’s possible to log into laptops equipped with a face-recognition login by simply putting a picture of the owner in front of the webcam. </p>
<h2>Right technology used the right way</h2>
<p>Using biometrics for security and identification requires meeting two challenges: they must be cheap enough and sufficiently simple to be used by ordinary users. And the context of when and how they are used must also be entirely ethical, and secure. For example, systems that store too many personal details or copies of biometric data could be hacked or abused without appropriate controls in place.</p>
<p>Biometrics could be the answer, but it’s a case of combining two or more types of authentication for added security, such as coupling fingerprints with key codes or passwords to provide greater trust that who is logging in is only who we are expecting. There may always be new picks created to open whatever new locks we invent, but if biometrics can make it that much harder, so much the better.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/31588/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Andrew Smith does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>How can we ensure that someone is who they say they are? How can be sure that the person in our system, both digitally speaking or physically in front of us, is who whom they claim to be? You may think…Andrew Smith, Lecturer in Networking, The Open UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.