Cigarette Machine uses Face-Recognition Software

Not sure if this technology will be fool proof. I can imagine some hacks coming out such as holding up a picture up to the camera to fool it…

“The vending machine has an “adult recognition” button, and when this is pressed a tiny camera takes a photo of the customer and analyzes certain features such as wrinkles and sagging around the eyes and mouth as well as the frame of the potential buyer’s body to determine a general age.

In a test with 500 people ranging in age from their teens to their 60s, this software was able to identify adults with 90% accuracy.

Distinguishing teenagers from twenty-somethings is more difficult. So when the software cannot make a judgment call, the customer needs to insert a license to prove their age. If the machine can make a match with the license photo, it will sell cigarettes.”

6 Comments


  1. I knew a lot of underage people that looked 30, what then?


  2. They would make lots of money buying cigarettes for their friends…


  3. Don’t they, already? Though, it is a felony in Canada to provide cigarettes to a minor, AFAIK.


  4. Canada has places for felons?



  5. Defeating this would be very easy and will become a sport for kids there they might even get by waring a rubber mask also face recognition is extremely unreliable in real world situations.
    So a mismatch between the pic on the license and the photo from the cam will happen about 40% of the time which will really tick off adults who happen to look young causing lost sales people may even choose to not use machines with this feature afterwards.
    Lasty it’s a felony to sell cigarettes to minors in Canada?
    Talk about harsh that country must be ran by a bunch of nazis and other four letter descriptives not suitable to post here .
    A fine of $400 to 5000 against the retailer depending on number of times and severity of the infraction is more then enough punishment.

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