A newly published investigation says that surveillance data gathered from social media platforms Facebook, Instagram and Twitter caused the arrest of Baltimore protestors.
A social media surveillance tool by Geofeedia reportedly used social media APIs to create real-time maps of social activity in protest areas. These maps consequently lead to the arrest of protestors shortly after their posts became public, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) reported.
According to the ACLU, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter provided user data access to Geofeedia, a developer of social media monitoring product. The report says that the same product have been marketed to law enforcement units to monitor the activists and protesters.
Geofeedia reportedly demonstrated similar capabilities in a public demo compiled at the time of Ferguson protests. Notably, the map does not make a distinction between posts by credentialed press and protestors. The data is drawn publicly from available images and geolocation data with screen names that are available on Instagram feed.
At the recent unrest after the death of Freddie Gray in Baltimore, Geofeedia representatives and the police also used facial recognition systems to locate the protestors with outstanding warrants, The Verge reported.
The biggest takeaway if the reports are true is that the surveillance system violates a number of clauses in developer policies in the said social media platforms. For instance, Twitter's Developer Agreement includes a specific rule against using its user data to investigate, surveil or track its users. Similarly, Facebook policy has a similar clause that prohibits developers from selling, licensing or purchasing any data obtained from their services. As for Instagram, the access to its API will be based on its discretion.
Facebook and Twitter has since suspended Geofeedia's access to their commercial data. Geofeedia on the otherhand, defended the company's practices in general by saying that they have "clear policies and guidelines to prevent the inappropriate use" of their software.
