Laser Vision (PBA) now redacts license plates and faces from the images and data sent to the PPA

Philly Bike Action has implemented redaction of license plates and faces from the images and data sent to the Philadelphia Parking Authority, as of Sunday January 18.

This decision was made with an abundance of caution giving the possibility of unintentional data sharing by subpoena or by accident. License plate data is not required by the PPA’s form. When we initially launched Laser Vision, we thought recording license plate information could be helpful for pro-safety enforcement efforts. We have not seen or heard anything to support that, and we have become increasingly concerned about surveillance and misuse of data. Facial recognition software can be another avenue for tracking, so we are now redacting detected faces in images submitted through Laser Vision.

We believe that these changes improve the privacy and safety of Laser Vision data without impacting its usefulness and functionality.

Additionally, we have recently learned that the Philadelphia Parking Authority has a contract to operate a federal parking garage used by the Department of Homeland Security for parking ICE vehicles and equipment. Given escalating concerns for the safety and wellbeing of Philadelphians at the hands of ICE, we encourage the PPA to discontinue any connection with ICE as soon as possible. We would like to continue working with the PPA as a trusted partner in protecting the safety of Philadelphia.