An Artificial Intelligence (AI) company which identifies “wanted” people for the Israeli military in the ongoing war with Hamas has Indian government connections.
Recently, The New York Times reported that the Israeli intelligence unit has deployed an expansive facial recognition program in Gaza to arrest and interrogate “wanted” people.
According to the news report, the facial recognition program was deployed after Hamas attacked Israel on 7 October 2023. Following the attack, Israel is fighting Hamas, which has claimed over 33,000 Palestinian lives in six months.
The report adds that the facial recognition program’s goals were to search for Israeli hostages, as well as Hamas fighters who could be detained for questioning. The report also includes voices from Gazans concerning the breach of privacy rights.
MoU in 2021
Interestingly, the facial recognition program created and run by Corsight AI, headquartered in Israel, has Indian connections, since 2021.
Corsight AI had inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with AMTRON (Assam Electronics Development Corporation Ltd, a Government of Assam undertaking country) and I-Sec, a Mumbai-based security services company.
The MoU was signed in August 2021 to set up a Facial Recognition Center of Excellence ("FR-COE") at Tech City in Guwahati, and in a press release, the Corsight says, “with this collaboration, AMTRON aspires to provide Facial Recognition services, capacity development, research and skilling services to the Government of India, State Governments and allied government organizations and Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) within India, against rapidly evolving demand for Facial Recognition Technology.”
Rob Watts, CEO of Corsight AI, had said then that they are proud to be working with AMTRON and I-Sec, as they roll out the most advanced Facial Recognition Technology across the nation (India), to protect the public from harm and improve security and safety.
A year ago on LinkedIn, Watts posted a video with a note detailing, “working together with our partners in India, AMTRON and I-SEC, we deployed our world-leading Facial Recognition software 'Fortify' on AMTRON's drone equipment.”
“A great use case for police and security services managing events/riots/parades and large gatherings along with general buildings of critical infrastructure perimeter security. Just look at the angles of address! Wow!!!,” the note added.
According to Corsight AI, Fortify is its core product – an advanced facial recognition system that provides industry-leading accuracy in crowds and challenging environments.
Fortify’s face detection and recognition persists in almost complete darkness, extreme angles, moving crowds, low-quality images, and partially covered faces. It easily integrates with existing camera infrastructure, equipping security professionals with a powerful, real-time, and forensic solution to rapidly pinpoint persons of interest, stop immediate threats, and ensure maximum safety.
Regulatory Gap
India's facial recognition technology (FRT) landscape faces a significant regulatory gap. While the 2017 Puttaswamy judgment established the right to privacy as fundamental, its application to FRT remains unclear. This right can be restricted, but only under specific conditions: a legal framework, a legitimate state purpose, and proportionality.
Despite this, no legislation by either the state or private entities governs FRT use. The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) claims cabinet approval for a centralised Automated Facial Recognition System (AFRS), but such approval doesn't constitute a law and lacks the necessary authority.
Interestingly, a NITI Aayog (the apex public policy think tank of the Indian government) discussion paper released in November 2022, details how facial recognition technology (FRT) clashes with privacy rights in India, specifically the right to informational autonomy as recognised in the Puttaswamy case.
The paper says that FRT systems rely on vast amounts of facial data, often collected without individual awareness or control, which raises concerns about "purpose creep," where data collected for one purpose is later used for another, undermining user consent.
It also adds that even voluntary FRT systems can threaten privacy for non-participants adding that their facial data might be included in datasets used for identification, leading to misidentification.
The think tank says that the increasing use of FRT threatens anonymity and can be used to suppress dissent.
India has passed a Data Protection Act in 2023 but a close read of the same reveals that exemptions to data processing by the state on grounds such as national security may lead to data collection, processing, and retention beyond what is necessary.
This may violate the fundamental right to privacy and the Act does not regulate risks of harms arising from processing of personal data.
Potential Incongruity in Maintaining a Partnership With Corsight AI
Meanwhile, Prasad Damodar, a data privacy researcher based in Kerala, expressed concerns about the fair use of FRT in India.
"There's global resistance to FRTs from ordinary citizens and rights activists," he said. "In India, this technology is particularly susceptible to misuse, potentially trapping innocent people."
Adding to what Damodar said, Mini Mohan, a Kerala-based sociologist, argued that the Assam government's IT wing signing a deal with an FRT AI firm is concerning, especially considering their push for a national population register and registry of citizens.
"We can't simply dismiss this as a coincidence. I fear that the government will use it to identify Indians and non-Indians based on their whims and fancies," she said.
"Furthermore, there's an incongruity in India, using software from a company that aids a military unit (likely Israeli) to hunt 'wanted' people in the Palestinian territory of Gaza,” she added.
Detailing more on the unfair use of FRTs, Mini said it can worsen discriminatory policing.
“This disadvantages individuals from historically marginalised groups, such as Muslims, Dalits, Adivasis, transgender communities, and others in India. It can even restrict their exercise of constitutionally protected rights. Furthermore, facial recognition can act as a tool of mass surveillance, hindering the free and safe practice of peaceful assembly,” she added.
An IT security expert based in Bangalore warned that we shouldn't be surprised if facial recognition technology (FRTs) are used to scan us without our consent.
"These technologies are often sold and bought globally as part of security deals," they explained. "The software itself is built with military-grade capabilities. So, it's no surprise when we hear about FRTs breaching privacy. Unfortunately, India's current Data Privacy Act lacks sufficient teeth, making such practices more likely,” the expert added.
Shockingly, Hyderabad City in Telangana state is already ranked as one of the most surveilled cities in the world.
According to Amnesty International, "the Telangana government has initiated the construction of a 'command and control centre' (CCC), a building that connects the city’s vast CCTV infrastructure in real time. Situated in Hyderabad’s Banjara Hills area, the CCC supports the processing of data from up to 600,000 cameras at once with the possibility to increase beyond this scope across Hyderabad city, Rachakonda, and Cyberabad."
Corsight's permanent systems are reportedly installed in European airports and hospitals, Asian cities, South American police departments and border crossings, as well as African mines and banks.
A query was sent to Ministry of Electronic and Information Technology and AMTRON on 11 April seeking a response on the potential incongruity in maintaining a partnership with a company whose technology is used in a militarised context, i.e., is it appropriate for a government entity to collaborate with a company implicated in potential privacy violations against civilians, and considering the international condemnation surrounding the Gaza conflict and concerns raised by the United Nations, does the Ministry or AMTRON have any reservations about its MoU with Corsight AI?
However, even after 24 hours, neither the Ministry nor AMTRON has responded to our queries. We will update this story when we receive a response.
(Rejimon Kuttappan is an independent journalist, labour migration specialist and author of Undocumented [Penguin 2021]. This is an opinion piece and the views expressed above are the author’s own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for them.)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)