
Airbnb to use names and profile photos to infer race of users - ibejoeb
https://www.airbnb.com/resources/hosting-homes/a/a-new-way-were-fighting-discrimination-on-airbnb-201
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breakfastduck
I can't say I'm fond of this, however well intentioned, and the main issue I
take is with this:

"We’ll use our partner’s perceptions, for example, to figure out whether the
reservations of those seen as a certain race are declined more often than
others, which will help us create new features and policies to address any
difference."

What 'features' could be put in place to prevent this? Modifying the name
shown to a booker? Or auto-rejecting non minority names to even the odds?

I don't doubt that the people behind this are doing it with good intentions,
but it is an absolutely terrifying to me & I wouldn't want to support any
business that is essentially attempting to racially profile its users and
potentially treat those users differently based on that profile, regardless of
why they're doing it.

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ibejoeb
Pertinent info: starts today. Opt-out, not opt-in.

>will look at these photos and first names and indicate their perceptions—or,
what race they think the information we shared suggests. They’ll share these
perceptions with a specialized team at Airbnb exclusively for anti-
discrimination work

