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Wegmans' Facial Scans in NYC Ignite Privacy Firestorm
Grocery chain Wegmans deploys facial recognition technology in some New York City stores.
Key Points
- Grocery chain Wegmans deploys facial recognition technology in some New York City stores, sparking a debate over customer privacy and biometric surveillance.
- Critics highlight the risk of permanent data loss, citing the FTC's five-year ban on Rite Aid for similar technology that falsely identified shoppers.
- The practice is permitted under a 2021 New York City law that mandates disclosure but lacks strict rules on data storage or security.
Grocery chain Wegmans is facing a backlash after deploying facial recognition technology on customers in some of its New York City stores, a move first reported by Gothamist. The company says the measure is for security, but critics are raising alarms about the risks of biometric surveillance.
Smile, you're on camera: In an official statement, Wegmans defended the practice as a targeted safety measure used only in a "small fraction" of high-risk stores. The company claims the system is solely for identifying individuals "previously flagged for misconduct" and that it doesn't collect other biometric data like voice or retinal scans.
Can't reset your face: The central fear for privacy advocates is the permanence of biometric data; if a face database is hacked, customers can't simply reset their faces like a password. This risk of error has real-world consequences, as seen when the FTC banned Rite Aid from using the tech for five years after its system falsely flagged shoppers for crimes.
A law with no teeth: The practice is governed by a 2021 New York City law that mandates disclosure but offers few rules on data storage or security. A more aggressive city-wide ban on the technology was proposed in 2023 but has so far failed to pass.
The incident puts a spotlight on the growing tension between retailers' efforts to combat theft and the public's expectation of privacy, forcing a debate on where the line should be drawn.
