CV Dazzle

CV Dazzle receives its name from naval camouflage used during WWI called Dazzle. Dazzle was used to help break up the structure of battleships to better conceal its heading and size. Similarly, CV Dazzle makes use of makeup and hair styling to break up on the contours of the face so as to interfere with the algorithm OpenCV uses for facial recognition.

The first video is not of the piece itself, it is of a facial recognition software known as OpenCV Face (I will not be providing a link to this software as I do not believe my artist would approve of making surveillance more accessible) Detection that can scan any photo and determine if there is a face present. Tutorials on how to use this software are freely available online, meaning ABSOLUTELY ANYONE CAN FIND AND USE THIS. This software can be used by people keep track of everything you do. Luckily, Adam Harvey's wearable tech, CV Dazzle, is designed to alter the appearance of your face enough that OpenCV no longer recognizes it as a face.

The concept of this piece is Privacy and Surveillance blended with Fashion. In the 21st Century, developments in technology are making it increasingly difficult to keep anything about yourself private. Your use of the Internet, your Credit Card transactions, anything that translates into digital data is being kept track of by no amount of public apologies from the companies that are hacked is going to make up for having your identity stolen.

"... CVDazzle is an updated version of the original dazzle camouflage from WWI, which was used to protect warships from submarine attacks...CV Dazzle is an unobvious style of camouflage because its eye-catching patterns and colors draw attention instead of hiding from it. As decoration...applied as hair styling or makeup, or together in combination with accessories. As camouflage, this facial markup works to protect against automated face detection and recognition systems by altering the contrast and spatial relationship of key facial features. The variations are limitless." (Author Unknown)  http://dismagazine.com/dystopia/evolved-lifestyles/8115/anti-surveillance-how-to-hide-from-machines/

The idea of camouflage by drawing attention to oneself is quite an intriguing one. But you are only drawing attention from actual people with their imperfect memories. You are completely safe from the persistent memory of machines. CV Dazzle serves its purpose well. In this way it serves the dual purpose of being fashionable (by human standards) but appearing as utter chaotic nonsense to machines programmed with very specific algorithms.

Our society needs more tools like CV Dazzle. Big corporations do not need to know every detail of our lives, especially if they are unable to keep that information from falling into the hands of people with intentions to use that information for more nefarious purposes than tailoring ads to our personal interests in order to get us to spend more.

Stealth Wear (2013), is a series of wearable pieces by Adam Harvey that continue to explore the ability to keep information private in an world we were are constantly under surveillance. While CV Dazzle was designed to prevent face detection, Stealth Wear, or The Anti-Drone Hoodie, is designed to cloak the wearer's thermal signature. The hoodie (it should be noted the hoodie is just the Proof of Concept piece and that he is working on other articles of clothing to be wearable on the parts of the body a hoodie wouldn't cover) is made from a metalized fabric made with silver threads, a flexible but heat reflective material perfect for aiding in non detection.

Anti-NIS Accessories(2014), are a series of proposed wearable objects created by Lisa Kori Chung designed to block thoughts from future neuro-imaging surveillance systems. Unlike Harvey's work, which is dealing with currently existing threats to a person's privacy, Lisa is already coming up with a solution to a potential future threat, effectively (assuming the type of surveillance in question actually is created) thwarting it before it even exists. This collection of pieces works by detecting when the wearer's thoughts come under surveillance and then providing a stimulus (flashing light, a sound, etc) to distract the wearer and cause them to think about the stimulus they are receiving. They are also quite a bit more visually pleasing to look at than the infamous "tinfoil hat."

Further Reading: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dazzle_camouflage