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Russia is rolling out a facial recognition payment system for Moscow metro riders, sparking privacy concerns

Tyler Sonnemaker   

Russia is rolling out a facial recognition payment system for Moscow metro riders, sparking privacy concerns
  • Moscow's metro has unveiled a facial recognition-based payment system, $4 reported.
  • Riders can now pay at more than 240 stations without needing a card, cash, or phone.

Moscow Metro rolled out new facial recognition technology on Friday, allowing customers to pay for rides using only their faces, $4 reported.

The new service, Face Pay, requires riders to upload their photo, bank card, and metro card information to a mobile app, enabling riders to pass through turnstiles by simply glancing at cameras positioned nearby, according to The Guardian.

Face Pay launched at more than $4 across Moscow Metro, Europe's busiest metro system with around $4 daily.

"Moscow is the first in the world to introduce Face Pay on such a scale. The technology is new and very complex, we will continue to work on improving it," Moscow Mayor $4 tweeted, according to a translation by The Guardian.

Maxim Liksutov, Moscow's deputy mayor for transport, said in a press release that his ministry expects 10% to 15% of riders to enroll in Face Pay within the next two to three years but added that other payment systems aren't going anywhere as of now, citing a report by $4.

While Russian officials touted the technology as a way to reduce wait times, especially during peak hours, privacy advocates raised concerns about Face Pay expanding Russia's state surveillance apparatus.

"This is a dangerous new step in Russia's push for control over its population," Stanislav Shakirov, founder of digital privacy and government transparency group Roskomsvoboda, told The Guardian.

"We are moving closer to authoritarian countries like China that have mastered facial technology," Shakirov added. "The Moscow metro is a government institution and all the data can end up in the hands of the security services."

Moscow has recently expanded its CCTV camera network, and has installed around 175,000 of its planned $4

But Reuters reported in 2020 that Moscow has used the cameras to $4 and is facing multiple lawsuits accusing it of enabling a $4 using that same network.

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