Sainsbury’s is set to implement contentious facial recognition technology for the first time in its stores. The UK’s second-largest supermarket chain aims to tackle shoplifting by utilizing CCTV to automatically scan customers’ faces, aiding in the identification and potential banning of individuals exhibiting violent or stealing behavior within the store.
Despite facing criticism from privacy advocacy groups, Sainsbury’s is commencing an eight-week trial of this technology at two locations: the Sydenham superstore in London and the Bath Oldfield Sainsbury’s Local branch, with the possibility of a nationwide rollout if successful.
While working with facial recognition firm Facewatch during the trial, Sainsbury’s clarified that the system promptly deletes records if faces are unrecognized, issuing alerts based on criminal activities reported by the store or neighboring retailers using Facewatch.
Simon Roberts, Sainsbury’s chief executive, emphasized that the initiative is not about surveilling staff or customers but solely focused on identifying and preventing serious offenses like violence, aggression, or theft. The company’s effort to enhance safety comes in response to escalating incidents of theft, abuse, and threatening conduct affecting Sainsbury’s teams nationwide.
Amid the trial, the shopworkers’ union Usdaw expressed support for Sainsbury’s efforts to safeguard retail workers and customers from abuse and violence, emphasizing a collaborative approach to combatting retail crime.
On the other hand, Big Brother Watch criticized the facial recognition trial as disproportionate and chilling, warning that such surveillance could lead to false accusations and mistreatment of innocent individuals. The advocacy group urged Sainsbury’s to halt the trial, calling for government intervention to curb the unchecked proliferation of invasive facial recognition technology.
In a similar vein, rival supermarket Asda has also initiated trials of live facial recognition in select stores to address retail crime, following in the footsteps of other retailers like Iceland who have adopted this technology.