Sainsbury's to expand facial recognition rollout to 200 stores by Christmas

Britain's second-largest retailer, Sainsbury's, has announced it is expanding the use of facial recognition technology across its stores to combat shoplifting, following a successful trial. The system supplied by Facwatch, which has been shown to deter repeat offenders, is currently live in more than 55 stores, a significant increase from two locations in January. The supermarket chain plans to install the technology in up to 150 additional locations before Christmas, taking the total to over 200 stores. According to the company, more than 90% of identified shoplifters did not return to the stores. Furthermore, the company claims that the system operates with 99.88% accuracy and that trained staff review every alert before taking any action. This is despite reports in February that a 42-year-old man was wrongly identified as a shoplifter at a Sainsbury's store in Elephant and Castle.

In a statement responding to the news, Big Brother Watch’s Director Silkie Carlo, said: "Innocent shoppers should not have to submit to Orwellian identity checks just to buy a loaf of bread or pick up nappies. The mass rollout of live facial recognition across Sainsbury’s stores is a shameful decision that treats customers like suspects, putting millions of law-abiding people at serious risk of privacy intrusions and humiliating false shoplifting accusations.

"We are seeing rising numbers of serious facial recognition mistakes in shops with terrible consequences for customers. Any of us could find ourselves being tapped on the shoulder, falsely accused of a crime and blacklisted from our local supermarket, often without knowing why. Big Brother Watch is regularly contacted by people trying to clear their names after being barred by AI-driven watchlists with no due process or effective right to appeal.

"This is one of the biggest expansions of facial recognition surveillance in the country to date that has very serious consequences for our privacy rights.

In related news, Facewatch has announced that it will launch a new crime management service in the Autumn, including the ability to alert police in real time when the most serious offenders enter shops.

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