France Is Using A.I. to Detect Whether People Are Wearing Masks

This article is part of Privacy in the Pandemic, a Future Tense series. Despite the famous French aversion to surveillance, the coronavirus pandemic has spurred France to integrate artificial intelligence tools into CCTV cameras in the Paris Metro. The new software, which is being trialed at the Châtelet-Les-Halles station in central Paris this week, will detect whether passengers are wearing face masks, Bloomberg reported. This is one of the ways that France, a country with one of the strictest lockdowns in Europe, is preparing for easing restrictions on Monday. While this decision shows France's willingness to use A.I. to help monitor people's behavior, the new system isn't as invasive as it sounds.