Bunnings given green light to use facial recognition tech on customers to combat crime

The Guardian - World NewsCenter-LeftEN 1 min read 100% complete by Josh Taylor Technology reporterFebruary 5, 2026 at 12:36 AM

AI Summary

short article 1 min

Hardware retailer Bunnings has been approved to use facial recognition technology on its customers in Australia. The decision reverses a 2024 ruling by the Australian privacy commissioner that initially found the practice breached customer privacy. The administrative review tribunal made the new ruling this week after hearing evidence from Bunnings store managers about regular threatening and abusive behavior from some customers. Bunnings argues the technology is necessary to prevent crime within its stores. The facial recognition system scans customers' faces and compares them to a database of individuals suspected of criminal activity.

Key Entities & Roles

Keywords

facial recognition technology 100% privacy 80% crime prevention 70% australian privacy commissioner 60% administrative review tribunal 60% data scanning 50% customer behaviour 40%

Sentiment Analysis

Neutral
Score: -0.10

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Source
The Guardian - World News
Political Lean
Center-Left (-0.40)
Far LeftCenterFar Right
Classification Confidence
85%
Geographic Perspective
Australia

This article was automatically classified using rule-based analysis. The political bias score ranges from -1 (far left) to +1 (far right).

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