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Your Voice: Will you be OK if shopping malls use facial recognition technology?

Clockwise, from top left: Rudy Trouwborst City staff No. Then everybody will know where you are at that moment, right? Is that how it works? I don’t want everybody to know where I am at that specific moment. I’d like to have some privacy. That’s all.
Richmond News
Will you be OK if shopping malls use facial recognition technology?
Cadillac Fairview (CF) - a Canadian real estate company which owns and operates 23 malls across the country - is being investigated by the privacy commissioner of Canada after a complaint was made by a mall customer in Calgary. Photos: Daisy Xiong

Clockwise, from top left:

Rudy Trouwborst

City staff

No. Then everybody will know where you are at that moment, right? Is that how it works? I don’t want everybody to know where I am at that specific moment. I’d like to have some privacy. That’s all.

Jun Akiyama

Make-up artist

No. I think for privacy reasons, they should ask for permission from anyone who is coming to the mall, because some people don’t want to be seen or don’t want to be on any kind of record.

Kevin Mang

Mechanic

No. I don’t think they need to use facial recognition technology to collect data. They can use other methods to collect information from customers or monitor traffic, such as anonymous surveys.

Issam Karoui

Programmer

Yes. I’m always into technology; I work on artificial intelligence. With this technology you can control more things; you can know how many people are in the mall; you can make it safer.

Ivan Pak

IT consultant

No. I don’t want this technology to be used in a shopping centre. I think it’s against my privacy and I don’t want to reveal my identity in a commercial area unless I’ve been asked for consent.