"Clearview AI has advised Canadian privacy protection authorities that, in response to their joint investigation, it will cease offering its facial recognition services in Canada", the statement released on Monday said.
The privacy commissioner’s office said that the company’s last contract in the country with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) is suspended indefinitely. The commissioner’s investigation into the use of the software by Canada’s federal police agency will continue, the statement said.
The privacy watchdog added that the investigation of Clearview, conducted by federal privacy authorities, as well as those in the provinces of Alberta, British Columbia, and Quebec, remain active.
The commissioner’s office is seeking that the company delete data already collected and cease any collection efforts underway.
Clearview AI has courted controversy for mining billions of users’ images from social media sites for its platform.