March 19, 2021 Release of Considerations for Public Purpose Initiatives Utilizing Camera Images by Private Business Operators―Examination of Use Cases for Infectious Disease Control

The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC) and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) have summarized a set of considerations in FAQ form entitled Considerations for Public Purpose Initiatives Utilizing Camera Images by Private Business Operators―Examination of Use Cases for Infectious Disease Control.These considerations are required of businesses when using camera images for public purposes.

Background and history

In March 2018, the Sub-working Group on Camera Image Utilization (chaired by KIKUCHI Hiroaki, Meiji University, hereafter referred to as the "SWG") under the Data Distribution Promotion Working Group (chaired by MORIKAWA Hiroyuki, Professor, University of Tokyo) released Guidebook for Camera Image Utilization version 2.0 (hereafter referred to as the Camera Image Guidebook). In the Camera Image Guidebook, considerations for camera image use for commercial purposes are specified by the SWG under the Data Distribution Promotion Working Group, which MIC and METI established in the IoT Promotion Consortium to activate data-related transactions beyond the boundaries of fields and industries.

Considering the state of technological progress since then and the revision of the Act on the Protection of Personal Information in 2020, the SWG started studying the revision of the Camera Image Guidebook in January 2021. Then, the SWG has found an increase in opportunities to use camera images for public purposes, including countermeasures against COVID-19. However, it has become clear that there is an urgent need to respond to businesses' concerns, including the concerns of those wondering whether to refer to the Camera Image Guidebook for commercial use as it is.

Against this background, MIC and METI have summarized what considerations are needed in FAQ form as an annex to the Camera Image Guidebook for businesses considering or implementing camera images for public purposes. Specifically, cases of congestion rate and mask-wearing rate measurement and cases of body temperature measurement are taken up as examples. From the perspective of personal privacy and the provisions of the Act on the Protection of Personal Information, the FAQ summarizes the required considerations of businesses in consultation with the Secretariat of the Personal Information Protection Commission.

Through the FAQ, it is expected that movements toward businesses' efforts to build mutual understanding with consumers and set up rules according to the industry and business type of each business operator will spread to use camera images for public purposes.

In the future, MIC and METI plan to continue the SWG's study to revise the Camera Image Guidebook by the end of fiscal 2021.

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  The published material is in Japanese only.