Facing reality: Myths and facts in face recognition and comparison

In this “myths and facts” presentation, Vica and Diana attempt to diffuse a number of stubborn misconceptions about face recognition relating to accuracy, bias, privacy, and human and machine capability. Besides placing these issues into the context of current academic research and international best practice, we will be also inviting the audience to test their opinions and face comparison skills with a few quiz questions as we go.

Presenters:

Dr Vica Papp is a dual forensic-biometric identification expert, specializing in forensic voice and text analysis, and large-scale biometric matching in the face domain. Vica currently serves as the elected chair of the Research Committee of the International Association for Forensic Phonetics and Acoustics, and represents New Zealand on the SC 37 Biometrics subcommittee of the International Organization for Standardization.

Diana Plesivkova is a Forensic Facial Examiner (Trainee) for Identity Services at Immigration New Zealand. She obtained her Master of Science in Forensic Science through University of Auckland. During her 3 years in the face comparison field, Diana completed over 150,000 face comparisons

Save the date: July 14 presentation: Forgotten Boys of Burma: Corruption and Child Abuse in Thailand

Thursday, July 14 (hybrid event, Zoom + Media Room at Christchurch Police Central)

In this presentation Detective Sergeant Daniel Isherwood (NZ Police) will walk us through a case study involving an Australian National committing sexual offences against numerous boys, discussing the challenges involved when dealing with bribery of both the Police and Judiciary.

Bio: After much heartbreak as a failed aspiring golf professional, I joined Police in 1997 where I spent the first 9 years of my career in Counties Manukau. I joined the CIB in 2000 and transferred to Christchurch in 2006 where I took up a position within the Special Tactics Group (STG). I spent 9yrs at STG learning the fine art of blowing things up (slow learner) before moving back to investigations in 2015. During my time in CIB, I have worked on a variety of squads, with a particular interest in ASA (Adult Sexual Assault) CPT (Child Protection) and Organised Crime. My current role is as the Detective Sergeant overseeing North Canterbury CIB. I am married to Sofie and have three fantastic kids. Outside of work I cart children to what feels like every sport ever invented, coach basketball and spend time hunting when I can.