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Incident 53: Biased Google Image Results

Description: On June 6, 2016, Google image searches of "three black teenagers" resulted in mostly mugshot images whereas Google image searchers of "three white teenagers" consisted of mostly stock images, suggesting a racial bias in Google's algorithm.

Tools

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Entities

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Alleged: Google developed and deployed an AI system, which harmed Minority Groups.

Incident Stats

Incident ID
53
Report Count
18
Incident Date
2016-03-31
Editors
Sean McGregor
Applied Taxonomies
CSETv0, CSETv1, GMF, MIT

CSETv1 Taxonomy Classifications

Taxonomy Details

Incident Number

The number of the incident in the AI Incident Database.
 

53

Notes (special interest intangible harm)

Input any notes that may help explain your answers.
 

Propagation of systemic racial bias by Google search

Special Interest Intangible Harm

An assessment of whether a special interest intangible harm occurred. This assessment does not consider the context of the intangible harm, if an AI was involved, or if there is characterizable class or subgroup of harmed entities. It is also not assessing if an intangible harm occurred. It is only asking if a special interest intangible harm occurred.
 

yes

Date of Incident Year

The year in which the incident occurred. If there are multiple harms or occurrences of the incident, list the earliest. If a precise date is unavailable, but the available sources provide a basis for estimating the year, estimate. Otherwise, leave blank. Enter in the format of YYYY
 

2012

Date of Incident Month

The month in which the incident occurred. If there are multiple harms or occurrences of the incident, list the earliest. If a precise date is unavailable, but the available sources provide a basis for estimating the month, estimate. Otherwise, leave blank. Enter in the format of MM
 

04

Estimated Date

“Yes” if the data was estimated. “No” otherwise.
 

Yes

CSETv0 Taxonomy Classifications

Taxonomy Details

Problem Nature

Indicates which, if any, of the following types of AI failure describe the incident: "Specification," i.e. the system's behavior did not align with the true intentions of its designer, operator, etc; "Robustness," i.e. the system operated unsafely because of features or changes in its environment, or in the inputs the system received; "Assurance," i.e. the system could not be adequately monitored or controlled during operation.
 

Robustness, Assurance

Physical System

Where relevant, indicates whether the AI system(s) was embedded into or tightly associated with specific types of hardware.
 

Software only

Level of Autonomy

The degree to which the AI system(s) functions independently from human intervention. "High" means there is no human involved in the system action execution; "Medium" means the system generates a decision and a human oversees the resulting action; "low" means the system generates decision-support output and a human makes a decision and executes an action.
 

High

Nature of End User

"Expert" if users with special training or technical expertise were the ones meant to benefit from the AI system(s)’ operation; "Amateur" if the AI systems were primarily meant to benefit the general public or untrained users.
 

Amateur

Public Sector Deployment

"Yes" if the AI system(s) involved in the accident were being used by the public sector or for the administration of public goods (for example, public transportation). "No" if the system(s) were being used in the private sector or for commercial purposes (for example, a ride-sharing company), on the other.
 

No

Data Inputs

A brief description of the data that the AI system(s) used or were trained on.
 

user input, images

MIT Taxonomy Classifications

Machine-Classified
Taxonomy Details

Risk Subdomain

A further 23 subdomains create an accessible and understandable classification of hazards and harms associated with AI
 

1.1. Unfair discrimination and misrepresentation

Risk Domain

The Domain Taxonomy of AI Risks classifies risks into seven AI risk domains: (1) Discrimination & toxicity, (2) Privacy & security, (3) Misinformation, (4) Malicious actors & misuse, (5) Human-computer interaction, (6) Socioeconomic & environmental harms, and (7) AI system safety, failures & limitations.
 
  1. Discrimination and Toxicity

Entity

Which, if any, entity is presented as the main cause of the risk
 

AI

Timing

The stage in the AI lifecycle at which the risk is presented as occurring
 

Post-deployment

Intent

Whether the risk is presented as occurring as an expected or unexpected outcome from pursuing a goal
 

Unintentional

Incident Reports

Reports Timeline

Missed Connections: What search engines say about women+1
Is Google Racist? Search 'Three Black Teenagers' Vs 'Three White Teenagers' & The Images Might Shock You: True Or False?
+12
Google "Three Black Teenagers" vs. "Three White Teenagers" - See the Problem?
Barstool SportsBias already exists in search engine results, and it’s only going to get worseWhen White Supremacists Target the Black Elderly
Missed Connections: What search engines say about women

Missed Connections: What search engines say about women

safiyaunoble.files.wordpress.com

Is Google Racist? Search 'Three Black Teenagers' Vs 'Three White Teenagers' & The Images Might Shock You: True Or False?

Is Google Racist? Search 'Three Black Teenagers' Vs 'Three White Teenagers' & The Images Might Shock You: True Or False?

antoinespeaks.co.uk

Google "Three Black Teenagers" vs. "Three White Teenagers" - See the Problem?

Google "Three Black Teenagers" vs. "Three White Teenagers" - See the Problem?

ca.news.yahoo.com

Google "Three Black Teenagers" vs. "Three White Teenagers" - See the Problem?

Google "Three Black Teenagers" vs. "Three White Teenagers" - See the Problem?

mic.com

Googling "Three Black Teens" vs. "Three White Teens"

Googling "Three Black Teens" vs. "Three White Teens"

ebaumsworld.com

Man compares Google searches for ‘black teenagers’ and ‘white teenagers’

Man compares Google searches for ‘black teenagers’ and ‘white teenagers’

metro.co.uk

'Three black teenagers' Google search sparks Twitter row

'Three black teenagers' Google search sparks Twitter row

bbc.com

Google Image Search For ‘Three Black Teenagers’ vs. ‘Three White Teenagers’ Is Outrageously Offensive

Google Image Search For ‘Three Black Teenagers’ vs. ‘Three White Teenagers’ Is Outrageously Offensive

sickchirpse.com

Three Black Teenagers Vs. Three White Teenagers: Google Images Shows Evil Mugshots And Happy Stock Photos

Three Black Teenagers Vs. Three White Teenagers: Google Images Shows Evil Mugshots And Happy Stock Photos

inquisitr.com

Google Image search for 'three black teenagers' vs 'three white teenagers' causes outrage

Google Image search for 'three black teenagers' vs 'three white teenagers' causes outrage

dailymail.co.uk

The ‘three black teenagers’ search shows it is society, not Google, that is racist

The ‘three black teenagers’ search shows it is society, not Google, that is racist

theguardian.com

Search 'three black teenagers' on Google and this is what you see

Search 'three black teenagers' on Google and this is what you see

washingtonpost.com

'Three black teenagers' Google Image search sparks racism row

'Three black teenagers' Google Image search sparks racism row

sbs.com.au

'Black teenagers' vs. 'white teenagers': Why Google's algorithm displays racist results

'Black teenagers' vs. 'white teenagers': Why Google's algorithm displays racist results

splinternews.com

Google faulted for racial bias in image search results for black teenagers

Google faulted for racial bias in image search results for black teenagers

washingtonpost.com

Barstool Sports

Barstool Sports

barstoolsports.com

Bias already exists in search engine results, and it’s only going to get worse

Bias already exists in search engine results, and it’s only going to get worse

technologyreview.com

When White Supremacists Target the Black Elderly

When White Supremacists Target the Black Elderly

nymag.com

Missed Connections: What search engines say about women
safiyaunoble.files.wordpress.com · 2012

On occasion, I ask my university students to follow me through a day in the life of an AfricanAmerican aunt, mother, mentor, or friend who is trying to help young women learn to use the Internet. In this exercise, I ask what kind of things …

Is Google Racist? Search 'Three Black Teenagers' Vs 'Three White Teenagers' & The Images Might Shock You: True Or False?
antoinespeaks.co.uk · 2016

What is the difference between the image search results when a person types “Three Black Teenagers” into google and then types “Three White Teenagers”?

Some people found the results disturbing and some people are calling google racist; Watc…

Google "Three Black Teenagers" vs. "Three White Teenagers" - See the Problem?
ca.news.yahoo.com · 2016

On Monday, Twitter user @iBeKabir learned that searching the phrase "three black teenagers" on Google images yields almost exclusively mugshots of black teens.

Curious, @iBeKabir says, "Let's just change the color" and swaps out "black" for…

Google "Three Black Teenagers" vs. "Three White Teenagers" - See the Problem?
mic.com · 2016

On Monday, Twitter user @iBeKabir learned that searching the phrase "three black teenagers" on Google images yields almost exclusively mugshots of black teens.

Curious, @iBeKabir says, "Let's just change the color" and swaps out "black" for…

Googling "Three Black Teens" vs. "Three White Teens"
ebaumsworld.com · 2016

A video shows image search results where the only difference in the search is "white" versus "black". In the first case stock photography is returned, while in the second, mugshots are returned.

Man compares Google searches for ‘black teenagers’ and ‘white teenagers’
metro.co.uk · 2016

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video

A man compared the results for Googling ‘Three black teenagers’ and ‘Three white teenagers’ – and the results have ignited debate…

'Three black teenagers' Google search sparks Twitter row
bbc.com · 2016

Image copyright Google images

What happens when you type: "Three black teenagers" into a Google image search?

Twitter user @ibekabir reposted a video showing someone doing just that, and thousands of social media users responded - because m…

Google Image Search For ‘Three Black Teenagers’ vs. ‘Three White Teenagers’ Is Outrageously Offensive
sickchirpse.com · 2016

A Google image search is going viral on Twitter as it’s said to highlight the pervasiveness of racial bias and media profiling.

A dude named Kabir Alli posted this clip on Twitter of himself carrying out a simple search of ‘three black teen…

Three Black Teenagers Vs. Three White Teenagers: Google Images Shows Evil Mugshots And Happy Stock Photos
inquisitr.com · 2016

When one searches a stock photo website like Shutterstock for “three black teenagers,” photos like the one above of three cute black teenagers by a photographer dubbed “Logo Boom” show up. Perhaps Google Images should take notes from the st…

Google Image search for 'three black teenagers' vs 'three white teenagers' causes outrage
dailymail.co.uk · 2016

Google image search 'three black teenagers' and then 'three white teenagers'.

A Twitter video of a man typing in this supposedly unremarkable search has gone massively viral since it was uploaded yesterday afternoon.

That's because his clip…

The ‘three black teenagers’ search shows it is society, not Google, that is racist
theguardian.com · 2016

This week Twitter user Kabir Alli posted a video of him carrying out two specific searches on Google. The search for “three white teenagers” produced smiling and happy generic images of white teenagers, while the search for “three black tee…

Search 'three black teenagers' on Google and this is what you see
washingtonpost.com · 2016

What you need to know about AMI, the company Jeff Bezos says tried to blackmail him

'Three black teenagers' Google Image search sparks racism row
sbs.com.au · 2016

A Google Image search which reveals starkly different results for 'three black teenagers' and 'three white teenagers' has sparked anger on social media.

'Three black teenagers' was trending on Twitter this week after 18-year-old Kabir Alli …

'Black teenagers' vs. 'white teenagers': Why Google's algorithm displays racist results
splinternews.com · 2016

The short answer to why Google's algorithm returns racist results is that society is racist. But let's start with a lil' story.

On June 6 (that's Monday, for those of you keeping track at home) Kabir Alli, an 18-year old in Virginia, posted…

Google faulted for racial bias in image search results for black teenagers
washingtonpost.com · 2016

If you searched for “three white teenagers” on Google Images earlier this month, the result spat up shiny, happy people in droves — an R.E.M. song in JPG format. The images, mostly stock photos, displayed young Caucasian men and women laugh…

Barstool Sports
barstoolsports.com · 2016

And just to make sure it’s not some sort of algorithmic Google search that only this guy is seeing:

Screen Shot 2016-06-08 at 11.00.47 AM

Screen Shot 2016-06-08 at 11.01.15 AM

Okay I’m sorry but those three dudes in the white teenagers pic …

Bias already exists in search engine results, and it’s only going to get worse
technologyreview.com · 2018

The internet might seem like a level playing field, but it isn’t. Safiya Umoja Noble came face to face with that fact one day when she used Google’s search engine to look for subjects her nieces might find interesting. She entered the term …

When White Supremacists Target the Black Elderly
nymag.com · 2018

Gregory Bush is arraigned on two counts of murder and 10 counts of wanton endangerment Thursday, Oct. 25, 2018, in Louisville, Ky. Bush fatally shot two African-American customers at a Kroger grocery store Wednesday and was swiftly arrested…

Variants

A "variant" is an incident that shares the same causative factors, produces similar harms, and involves the same intelligent systems as a known AI incident. Rather than index variants as entirely separate incidents, we list variations of incidents under the first similar incident submitted to the database. Unlike other submission types to the incident database, variants are not required to have reporting in evidence external to the Incident Database. Learn more from the research paper.

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