When shopping at Home Depot, it’s advisable to be aware of potential facial recognition technology being used at the self-checkout counters. A resident from Chicago, Benjamin Jankowski, has initiated legal proceedings against Home Depot, alleging that the store’s self-checkout kiosks employ facial recognition without obtaining customers’ consent.
The class action lawsuit, lodged on August 1, asserts that Home Depot is infringing upon Illinois’ 2008 Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) and demands up to $5,000 from Home Depot for each violation. With 76 Home Depot locations across Illinois, these penalties could accumulate to millions if Jankowski prevails in court.
On June 22, during his visit to a nearby Home Depot, Jankowski noted the use of a self-checkout kiosk due to the absence of cashiers. He observed a camera and screen positioned above the kiosk displaying a green border surrounding his face, indicating facial recognition technology. Jankowski took a snapshot of the display, remarking the lack of any signs or notices throughout the store warning that Home Depot was gathering biometric data.
This practice violates the mandates of BIPA, which intends to shield Illinois residents’ biometric information from unauthorized collection and misuse by businesses. The law requires companies to secure written consent prior to collecting or disclosing biometric information, as well as guidelines for safe data destruction.
The precedent set in a 2019 case, Rosenbach v. Six Flags, enabled Illinois citizens to sue corporations for illegally gathering their biometric data per BIPA’s regulations. In this instance, a mother pursued legal action against Six Flags for taking her son’s fingerprints without proper notification and consent. Though the park didn’t misuse the biometric data, the court found it still committed a “technical violation” of BIPA warranting damages to Rosenbach.
Jankowski’s claims against Home Depot echo the previous case, emphasizing the necessity of obtaining consumer consent before collecting any biometric data. Scott Glenn, Home Depot’s VP of Asset Protection, has previously mentioned in a 2024 interview that the application of computer vision is primarily for security, specifically targeting theft reduction.
However, many consumers may feel uneasy with their biometric information being collected without their tacit knowledge or approval. Unlike changing a compromised password, individuals cannot modify biometric indicators such as fingerprints or facial features. Though it’s likely that various retailers are employing biometric data collection, Jankowski’s legal action underscores the rights of shoppers in Illinois to be adequately informed of such practices.
