NYPD Begins Secret Trial of Clearview AI Facial Recognition Technology

The New York Police Department signed a nondisclosure agreement with Clearview AI on December 6, 2018, beginning a secret trial period that would run through March 6, 2019. The trial marked one of the first major law enforcement deployments of Clearview’s controversial facial recognition technology, which had scraped billions of images from social media and the internet without consent. Emails between NYPD and Clearview AI show that CEO Hoan Ton-That was introduced to NYPD deputy inspector Chris Flanagan in October 2018, leading to the formal trial contract in December.

Scale of Secret Deployment

By February 2020, more than 40 individuals in the New York Police Department had collectively run over 11,000 searches using Clearview AI’s facial recognition system. Approximately 50 members of the NYPD had access to or an account with Clearview AI during this period. Critically, officers continued using Clearview AI long after the official trial period ended in March 2019, with officers continuing to sign up through the company’s free trial program through at least February 2020.

NYPD’s Public Deception

Despite extensive use of the technology, the NYPD told BuzzFeed News in February 2020 that it “does not have any contract, agreement, or relationship with Clearview AI, formally or informally.” This statement was directly contradicted by the emails and contract records, revealing a pattern of deliberate public deception about the department’s use of mass surveillance technology.

Significance

The NYPD’s secret adoption of Clearview AI represented a turning point in law enforcement surveillance capabilities. It demonstrated how police departments could deploy controversial facial recognition technology without public knowledge or oversight, simply by using “trial periods” and informal arrangements to avoid transparency requirements. The deployment also validated Clearview’s business model, helping the company attract thousands of other law enforcement agencies as clients. The NYPD’s willingness to mislead the public about its use of this technology highlighted the lack of democratic accountability in the expansion of surveillance infrastructure.