Creepy

It had to happen, I guess: now someone has developed an app that will allow users to access all sorts of information about total strangers just by looking at them.

A new app for Google Glass called NameTag uses facial recognition to end privacy as we know it. Originally announced in December of 2013, the new app will make real-time facial recognition a reality for anyone who owns a pair of Google Glasses, iPhone or Android device.

Most of us have been in the awkward social situation where you encounter someone you recognize, but you can’t quite put your finger on their name. You try to steer the conversation to discover a hint as to where you know this individual from, but before long, you have to ask the somewhat embarrassing question, “I’m sorry, but who are you again?” However, FacialNetwork.com and NameTag hope to give you an easy and somewhat disturbing solution to this problem.

The solution comes part and parcel with Google Glass, the wearable tech that is already changing our culture before it even arrives for public consumption. As a wearable screen with a camera, Google Glass has given an exciting look into the future of integrated technology.

It has also generated a good deal of controversy, centered around privacy concerns. The device is designed to have a light on the front that is clearly visible when anything is being recorded, but as with most technology, there are ways around these safety measures. . . .

NameTag uses facial recognition technology that will allow you to take a snapshot of the person you forgot or the cute person at the bar and send the picture to NameTag’s servers, where it will be compared to pictures available on social media sites. If a match is found, then the picture is sent back with the person’s name, as well as other significant personal details, including hobbies, interests, and even their current relationship status. If a criminal record is also found in the public record, it will flash in nice big red letters.

And apparently, the developers just don't get it:

Once you get past the impressive part of how NameTag uses facial recognition, the naivete or just plain apathy of the developers beings to show through. “I believe that this will make online dating and offline social interactions much safer and give us a far better understanding of the people around us,” said Kevin Alan Tussy.

As the creator of NameTag, he believes that it is easier to get all the information we would normally find out in a conversation at the push of a button, or as E! Online reported, a wink of an eye.

OK -- is that classic nerd, or what? Frankly, I'd rather get that information through a conversation, thank you very much, in which both parties get to choose how much they reveal at any given moment.

Another reason to avoid social media.

Via Joe.My.God.