Breaking News
Alarm raised over ‘privacy dilemma’ of facial recognition technology at Coles and Woolworths
The Guardian World
Monday 17 August 2026, 15:00 UTC
By Catie McLeod Consumer affairs reporter
1 min read
Key Points
Supermarkets say they are exploring ways to keep people safe, but experts claim the tech is ‘normalising surveillance’Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastConsumer privacy advocates have responded with alarm after Coles and Woolworths confirmed they were testing facial recognition technology that they could use in their Australian supermarkets to record shoppers’ personal biometric data. The supermarket giants on Monday confirmed they had tested the technology and said...
Supermarkets say they are exploring ways to keep people safe, but experts claim the tech is ‘normalising surveillance’
Consumer privacy advocates have responded with alarm after Coles and Woolworths confirmed they were testing facial recognition technology that they could use in their Australian supermarkets to record shoppers’ personal biometric data.
The supermarket giants on Monday confirmed they had tested the technology and said they were considering installing it in their Australian stores to crack down on retail crime including aggression towards staff.
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Originally published by The Guardian World
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