Dear Editor,
I am writing to clarify the misinformation in the article “Halfway to $300k Goal” in the June 29-July 5, 2019 issue of the Northwest Asian Weekly.
I am the project manager and consultant of the proposed project, and has worked on this project since day one. I have not communicated with the author, Mr. Meyer.
These are the facts for the proposed project.
- The mission of the project is to reduce crime and promote better living and business environment in Chinatown-ID.
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Avigilon (a Motorola company) does not have any facial-recognition or AI hardware/software technology. We did not propose or say anything about facial recognition during the dinner. Motorola is a U.S. technology company and a contractor to the federal government.
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The proposed coverage in Chinatown will not be the most monitored neighborhood in the city. Rather, the University of Washington (UW) is the most monitored community if you want to compare. The UW deployed Avigilon’s cameras on its campus, according to Jordan Ramadan, a representative of Avigilon.
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Law enforcement will find it useful in combating crime, just like the body cameras they have been wearing. I stated clearly that video clips will be supplied to law enforcement only during criminal investigations. Law enforcement will not have direct access to the system.
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During the dinner, I described a few use cases of the proposed system—24/7 real-time surveillance is not one of them.
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The common/similar technology used in Xinjiang, the UW, the City of Bellevue, the White House, federal government buildings, and everybody’s cell phones is the imaging technology.
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The video will be recorded, and used only to help law enforcement in solving crime.
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One slide showed the proposed coverage area using Google maps, with a hand-drawn square in Microsoft PowerPoint. “Laser” is just an imagination of the author.
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The Republic of Singapore is a democratic country and one of the safest. It is also an important ally of the United States.
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Technically speaking, there are special cameras and software for automatic facial and license plate recognition. Neither of the cameras proposed in this project has that capability.
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Vendors and I have been working hard to ensure the project follows all the local privacy and other laws.
I have a graduate degree in electrical and computer engineering. I have worked in the technology field for over 25 years and also taught technical courses in college level. In addition, I am a registered Professional Engineer (P.Eng) and Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP).
I will be happy to share the technology and project details with Mr. Meyer.
Kind Regards,
— Donny Kwan, P.Eng, CISSP