NY AG Questions Use of Facial Recognition

New York Lawyer Normal Letitia James is asking Madison Sq. Backyard (MSG) Leisure — the operator of Madison Sq. Backyard, Radio Metropolis Music Corridor and different venues in New York Metropolis — about its use of facial recognition expertise to maintain out sure ticketholders, in line with a Wednesday (Jan. 25) press launch.

In a letter to MSG Leisure, James mentioned that the corporate has used the expertise to establish and deny entry to legal professionals concerned in litigation towards it — to the extent that the coverage has affected legal professionals at 90 corporations — and that the apply may violate legal guidelines.

James additionally requested in regards to the reliability of facial recognition expertise and whether or not there are safeguards in place to keep away from bias and discrimination.

“Madison Sq. Backyard and Radio Metropolis Music Corridor are world-renowned venues and may deal with all patrons who bought tickets with equity and respect,” James mentioned within the launch. “Anybody with a ticket to an occasion shouldn’t be involved that they might be wrongfully denied entry based mostly on their look, and we’re urging MSG Leisure to reverse this coverage.”

MSG Leisure didn’t instantly reply to PYMNTS’ request for remark.

A number of media reviews quote a spokesperson for MSG Leisure saying: “To be clear, our coverage doesn’t unlawfully prohibit anybody from coming into our venues and it isn’t our intent to dissuade attorneys from representing plaintiffs in litigation towards us. We’re merely excluding a small share of legal professionals solely throughout energetic litigation.

“Most significantly, to even counsel anybody is being excluded based mostly on the protected lessons recognized in state and federal civil rights legal guidelines is ludicrous,” the spokesperson mentioned, in line with the reviews. “Our coverage has by no means utilized to attorneys representing plaintiffs who allege sexual harassment or employment discrimination.”

In her letter to MSG Leisure, James requested the corporate to reply by Feb. 13 with justifications of its present coverage and explanations of its efforts to make sure that its use of facial recognition expertise won’t result in discrimination.

Past these points, facial recognition software program is dealing with renewed scrutiny within the wake of a number of wrongful arrests and incorrect identification makes an attempt.

As PYMNTS reported Jan. 8, mishaps have rekindled issues in regards to the new expertise, which is within the midst of a widespread rollout and adaptation to new use instances.

PYMNTS Information: Why Customers Are Making an attempt Digital Wallets

A PYMNTS examine, “New Funds Choices: Why Customers Are Making an attempt Digital Wallets” finds that 52% of US customers tried out a brand new cost technique in 2022, with many selecting to offer digital wallets a attempt for the primary time.