Seoul bridge AI suicide detection raises privacy concerns

The use of AI by the Seoul Metropolitan Government to detect and prevent suicide attempts on the Han River raised concerns that the project may encroach on personal privacy. With the highest suicide rate of any OECD country , a rate that accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic, authorities in the South Korean capital Seoul have been operating a 24 - hour CCTV-based suicide surveillance and response system since 2012 on bridges over the Han River. To help reduce the number of suicides, and better spread resources, Seoul's Institute of Technology (SIT) and Seoul Fire and Disaster Headquarters started using machine learning to alert them to the scenes most likely to require intervention. However, the initiative alarmed some privacy experts, who warned it could violate the privacy of people using bridges across the Han River, especially given the lack of public signage. Others expressed fears that the system could be used for other surveillance-related purposes in the future . System 🤖 Documents 📃 Seoul Institute of Technology (2021). 서울시, AI로 한강교량 투신시도 찾아낸다…고도화 CCTV관제기술 시범적용 Operator: Seoul Metropolitan Government Developer: Seoul Institute of Technology (SIT); Seoul Fire and Disaster Headquarters (SFDH) Country: S Korea Sector: Govt - municipal Purpose: Reduce suicides Technology: Computer vision; Machine learning Issue: Privacy; Dual/multi-use; Surveillance

Date it happened

2021-06-01

Organisation involved

Seoul Metropolitan Government

This is a record of what was reported, not a finding that anyone broke the law. If it names your organisation and you believe it is wrong, the corrections process is free and open to everyone.