'AI Profile Photos' Trending Among Young People
Affordable and Convenient... Opinions Divided on Using for ID
Ministry of the Interior and Safety "Not Allowed for Resident Registration Card Photos"
The government has stated that artificial intelligence (AI) profile photos, which have recently gained great popularity among young people, "cannot be used for resident registration cards."
On the 27th, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety announced that photos that can be altered or make identity verification difficult cannot be used for resident registration cards. This response came after posts claiming that IDs could be issued using 'AI profile photos' provided by Naver subsidiary Snow and others spread on social networking services (SNS).
'AI profile photos' are a service where users upload 10 to 20 selfies, and AI generates photos with various concepts based on the input images. Attracted by the promise of enhancing appearance beautifully, tens of thousands of related posts have been uploaded on SNS, making it a trend.
Although it is a paid service, it is convenient and cheaper compared to photo studios where one must pay over 100,000 won for profile photo shoots. To receive photos within one hour, the fee is 6,600 won, and for delivery within 24 hours, the fee is 3,300 won.
This has sparked debate over whether AI-generated photos, rather than actual photos taken, can be used on identification cards. Supporters responded, "Photo studios do a lot of retouching anyway, so if it does not differ significantly from the person's face, shouldn't it be allowed?"
On the other hand, opposing views included comments such as "It seems unlikely to match the ID with the actual face," "It is closer to an avatar than my real face," and "Excessive retouching makes it impossible to prove my identity."
According to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, resident registration card photos must be upper-body photos without hats, taken within the last six months, measuring 3.5 cm in width and 4.5 cm in height. When reissuing a resident registration card, a facial recognition program extracts feature points by comparing with the previous photo to determine if it is the same person.
However, the Ministry plans to instruct local governments to strictly enforce photo standards to prevent retouched photos that make identity verification difficult from being used on resident registration cards. Additionally, they are considering collaborating with Snow, the provider of the AI profile service, to include a phrase stating "This photo cannot be used for resident registration cards" when using the service.
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