Finally, the predictability of sexual orientation could have serious and even life-threatening implications to gay men and women and the society as a whole. In some cultures, gay men and women still suffer physical and psychological abuse at the hands of governments, neighbors, and even their own families. Perhaps due to discrimination and stigmatization, gay people are also at a higher risk of depression, suicide, self-harm, and substance abuse (King et al., 2008). Consequently, their well-being and safety may depend on their ability to control when and to whom to reveal their sexual orientation. Press reports suggest that governments and corporations are developing and deploying face-based prediction tools aimed at intimate psycho–demographic traits, such as the likelihood of committing a crime, or being a terrorist or pedophile (Chin & Lin, 2017; Lubin, 2016). The laws in many countries criminalize same-gender sexual behavior, and in eight countries—including Iran, Mauritania, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen—it is punishable by death (UN Human Rights Council, 2015). It is thus critical to inform policymakers, technology companies and, most importantly, the gay community, of how accurate face-based predictions might be.
