Pair accused of turning photos into vids to crack tax dept facial recognition system in China

A duo in China has been accused of tricking a government-run identity verification system to create fake invoices.

According to state-controlled outlet Xinhua, the suspects tricked the State Taxation Administration platform’s identity verification system by manipulating high-def photos with a widely available app that turns photos into videos.

The defendants then obtained a smartphone that allowed them to bypass its camera during facial authentication, instead feeding their doctored videos into the system.

The facial recognition system fell for the ruse and authenticated the people depicted in the videos, prosecutors claim.

Once logged in, the pair issued fake invoices on behalf of a shell company, and presumably hoped they’d be paid, the prosecutor alleged.

According to Shanghai prosecutors, the duo had been at it since 2018. The two men also allegedly cracked a business license issuance app and added their own facial biometrics so they could log on as legitimate users.

China was an early adopter of facial recognition identity verification and the technology now permeates everyday life as a common authentication method in retail transactions and to access government services. China also makes extensive use of facial recognition as a security measure. ®

READ MORE HERE