Bunnings found to have breached privacy rules with facial recognition technology

Bunnings will fight a finding that it breached privacy rules by collecting customers’ personal information during a trial of facial recognition technology that aimed to reduce theft and violence in its stores.

In a decision on Tuesday, the Federal Privacy Commissioner Carly Kind found that while Bunnings’ motives were understandable, “deploying facial recognition technology was the most intrusive option, disproportionately interfering with the privacy of everyone who entered its stores, not just high-risk individuals”.

Commissioner Kind found Bunnings collected individuals’ sensitive information without consent, failed to take reasonable steps to notify individuals that their personal information was being collected, and did not include required information in its privacy policy.

Bunnings, owned by WA conglomerate Wesfarmers, said it would seek a review of the decision with the Australian Review Tribunal.

More to come.