Kmart, Bunnings and The Good Guys using facial recognition technology in stores: Three major retailers in Australia are using facial recognition technology, often without shoppers realising.
How safe is your face?
A recent report by Australia’s leading consumer advocacy group CHOICE has revealed that Kmart, Bunnings and The Good Guys are all using facial recognition technology in their stores, mostly without shoppers realising.
But what is Facial Recognition Technology and how does it work?
Many of us use facial recognition everyday to quickly unlock our phone, log in to apps, and make purchases – we know that Government agencies use it to identify terrorists or other criminals and indeed has become a widespread and routine policing tool in America.
However, privacy advocates are concerned about the creeping use of facial recognition tools without widespread public discussion or adequate rules to monitor its rapid progression into the retail sphere.
And the Australian public is mostly oblivious of what’s happening to the capture and use of their personal biometric data. Bunnings say its usage discourages poor behaviour, and as an anti-theft tool. But how?
What happens to the information? Who looks after the data? Who can access it? What are the legal ramifications of capturing and storing our biometric data? Especially when that information is taken without our knowledge or consent… Should we be able to own our own biometric data? What are the associated privacy issues?
Who owns my face?
So many questions…
So, to help us through the quagmire, I’m joined by Kathryn Gledhill-Tucker – who is a Nyungar technologist and digital rights activist currently serving on the board of Electronic Frontiers Australia.
Kat is a Nyungar technologist, writer, digital rights activist currently living on Whadjuk Noongar boodjar. My work explores the intersection of activism, science-fiction, and technology in imagining radical futures and ushering them into existence. https://kgt.dev/
Find out more at the EFA Website.