This is the second time the regulator has ruled against facial recognition in retail, following a similar finding against Bunnings last year – a decision that is currently under review by the Administrative Review Tribunal.
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In Bunnings’ case, it took the data of customers’ faces over a three-year period and compared them against a database of individuals the company had deemed a potential risk due to past crime or violent behaviour. Its managing director Mike Schneider said stores that participated in the trial had seen a clear reduction in violent incidents.
The watchdog opened an investigation into Kmart for its use of facial-recognition technology at the same time as the Bunnings investigation. Wesfarmers, which operates Kmart, Bunnings and Officeworks, confirmed Officeworks does not use the technology.
Kind said that the findings did not mean facial-recognition technology was banned outright, but that retailers and public venues have to weigh crime prevention with customer privacy.
“These two decisions do not impose a ban on the use of facial-recognition technology,” Kind said. “Customer and staff safety, and fraud prevention, are legitimate reasons businesses might consider these technologies. However, these reasons are not a free pass to avoid compliance with the Privacy Act.”
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