A Latvian company, Regular Forensics, has been hired as the new vendor for the face recognition feature of the National Digital Identity portal, e-Faas.
National Center for Information Technology (NCIT) today said in a statement that the contract with the previous vendor, Sum and Substance Private Limited (Sumsub), a UK-registered company with Israeli ownership, had been terminated.
The contract was ended in response to public dissatisfaction over the government's association with an Iraeli-linked company, the statement said.
The Maldives has consistently advocated for the rights of Palestinians and supported the cause on international platforms. Maldivian citizens have always been vocal in their support for an independent Palestinian state, with calls for action intensified following the ongoing Israeli genocide in Gaza.
According to NCIT, the face recognition feature already utilizes a specialized application developed by Regular Forensics, a company with three decades of experience in the field. With this change, the face recognition feature is currently available only on the e-Faas web, which is compatible with all commonly used browsers.
The NCIT emphasized that the system protects pictures and sensitive data of Maldivian citizens.
'This will not compromise pictures or sensitive data of any Maldivian to a foreign company, and will remain within the NCIT framework,' the company assured.
