JOHAN STEYN: In the digital age, your face is yours no more
In a busy coffee shop, a woman sits alone, headphones in her ears, her eyes focusing on her laptop screen. A stranger walks up to her and greets her by name. He seems charismatic and talkative. She’s really not in the mood to be disturbed, much less to be flirted with, but this guy seems to know so much about her. The stranger’s familiarity makes her feel both intrigued and a bit terrified. “How does he know so much about me?”
What she does not know is that the stranger used technology to instantly find out much about her life. He noticed her sitting two tables from him, took out his smartphone and captured a picture of her face. Next, he opened an application called FindFace and uploaded the picture. In a second he viewed a multitude of pictures matching her face and it enabled him to view her LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter profiles. He also read her blog and gained insight into her dreams, fears, hobbies and friends. ..
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