Customers not aware that their sensitive biometrics information was gathered
October 29, 2020 – Cadillac Fairview – one of North America’s largest commercial real estate companies – embedded cameras inside their digital information kiosks at 12 shopping malls across Canada and used facial recognition technology without their customers’ knowledge or consent, an investigation by the federal, Alberta and BC Privacy Commissioners has found.
The goal, the company said, was to analyze the age and gender of shoppers and not to identify individuals. Cadillac Fairview also asserted that shoppers were made aware of the activity via decals it had placed on shopping mall entry doors that referred to their privacy policy – a measure the Commissioners determined was insufficient.
Cadillac Fairview also asserted that it was not collecting personal information, since the images taken by camera were briefly analyzed then deleted. However, the Commissioners found that Cadillac Fairview did collect personal information, and contravened privacy laws by failing to obtain meaningful consent as they collected the 5 million images with small, inconspicuous cameras. Cadillac Fairview also used video analytics to collect and analyze sensitive biometric information of customers.
Cadillac Fairview also asserted that shoppers were made aware of the activity via decals it had placed on shopping mall entry doors that referred to their privacy policy
They should get fined for an answer like that. Seriously.
There was a case in Canada a few years ago
Report from the privacy commissioner: https://www.priv.gc.ca/en/opc-news/news-and-announcements/2020/nr-c_201029/
And guess what. They’ll keep at it unless at least one of them goes to prison.
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They should get fined for an answer like that. Seriously.
My hope is that dumb responses like that will increase the chance of an unfavorable decision for them