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Retail facial recognition for crime prevention finds support in Australia, UK

Regulatory hurdles remain
Retail facial recognition for crime prevention finds support in Australia, UK
 

Retailers in Australia and the UK are keen to use facial recognition to cut down on shoplifting and violence in stores, and finding public support. Regulators are not convinced, however, and a major American chain has failed in a bid to have a lawsuit against it thrown out. 

Australian retail chain finds public support for facial recognition

After the Australian data watchdog found that retail chain Bunnings was breaching the country’s privacy laws by using facial recognition, the company received some unexpected support. A poll conducted by news.com.au this week revealed that 78 percent of nearly 11,000 respondents supported the company’s use of the controversial program, calling it an “important tool.”

The news comes after Bunnings released shocking footage showing its staff being abused at work, which supports its claims that facial recognition systems are necessary for security. The household hardware and gardening chain store also indicated that it may appeal to the decision of the Office of the Information Commissioner (OAIC), adding that the technology reduced incidents of abuse, threats and assaults by half.

Last week, the OAIC found Bunnings in breach of Australia’s Australian privacy law, which states that biometric data derived from facial recognition is highly sensitive and requires consent for collection. The company trialed the facial recognition system between November 2018 and November 2021, capturing the faces of customers in 63 of its stores across the Australian states of Victoria and New South Wales.

Former Australian Human Rights Commissioner Edward Santow said that authorities are concerned about the technology despite “legitimate concerns” such as preventing crime. “What you’re creating with this sort of facial recognition is a kind of virtual line up and we’re always in it every time we walk into one of those stores,” he told the media outlet.

The company has also worked with the police in testing the system. Faces were matched against a “limited database” of almost 500 banned people, created by Bunnings stores by trawling through CCTV footage and collecting independent records from the police.

Santow points out that current facial recognition systems rely on data captured without “rigor.” The legal expert, who currently works as Director for Policy and Governance at the Human Technology Institute at the University of Technology Sydney, also questioned the bias leading to errors with people with darker skin, women and other categories.

The OAIC decision was hailed as a “landmark decision” by consumer group Choice, which has been highlighting facial recognition use by retailers such as Bunnings and Kmart. The latter is also under OAIC investigation. The ruling, however, could have broader effects on any organizations that use CCTV in Australia, according to Mullins law firm.

“This case serves as a wake-up call for all organizations to consider their privacy practices, including in relation to the information they collect and why,” writes Andrew Nichols, partner at Mullins.

In September, the OAIC also wrapped up an investigation into 7-Eleven’s use of facial recognition technology, after the retailer promised it would not repeat its 2021 breaches of the Privacy Act.

UK retailer supports facial recognition for cracking down on crime

UK’s supermarket chain Iceland Foods is standing in support of facial recognition.

The frozen food stores’ executive chairman Richard Malcolm Walker shared his reaction on social media to recently released statistics from a UK Parliament committee. The data showed that nearly 17 million shoplifting incidents are happening every year, costing retailers almost £2 billion (US$2.5 billion).

“Whilst we don’t yet use it, I will HAPPILY trial and use legal, proportionate facial recognition technology as an effective response to the very real threat my colleagues face,” Walker wrote on LinkedIn.

The statistics were released by the Justice and Home Affairs Committee which called for reforms to address organized retail crime. In a letter to Policing Minister Diana Johnson, the group highlighted an unprecedented spike in large-scale theft operations. Facial recognition tools could become a crucial asset in identifying and deterring habitual offenders in retail settings, the committee concluded.

Target’s BIPA lawsuit goes forward

An Illinois federal court has refused to dismiss a lawsuit against Target, ruling that there was the plaintiff submitted enough sources to create a “plausible inference” that the retailer engaged in the alleged conduct.

The Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) lawsuit was filed by a group of four customers who claimed that the retail giant was collecting and storing their biometrics without their consent. Target argued that the court should not accept the complaint because it is based on news articles and internet posts, USA Today reports.

One of the women in the suit claims that Target employees followed her through the store and viewed her LinkedIn profile shortly after she entered it. The judge also noted that Target has declined to reveal the name of the video surveillance equipment provider to one of the plaintiff’s attorneys.

An end to facial recognition in retail stores?

And while retailers are struggling with facial recognition regulation, some companies are trying to find novel solutions.

Paris-based company Veeson has developed AI technology that alerts store owners of shoplifting without collecting biometric data. Instead of facial recognition, the software detects gestures associated with potential shoplifting such as people putting items in their bags or clothes.

A shoplifting attempt will generate a real-time video alert on the store owner’s mobile phone which allows them to approach the client and ask if they need help – warning them that they are being watched.

Since the technology focuses on analyzing body movements, it does a better job at avoiding bias from store employees, Veesion co-founder Benoit Koenig told CBS News.

The firm’s technology can be incorporated into existing CCTV systems and is being used in 4,000 stores worldwide, including 500 in the U.S.

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