A form of facial recognition technology is now in place at Phillies, Giants, Astros and Nationals games. Baseball officials say the goal is efficiency, but some groups focused on privacy issues have raised concerns.
Friction points range from slow-moving concourse crowds to weak Wi-Fi, but long lines -- whether for bathrooms, beers or anything else -- always draw the most complaints. So, over the past few years, MLB has pushed its clubs to address one of the oft-cited areas of friction at stadiums: actually getting into the ballpark.
To some, however, facial recognition technology presents a heightened concern with greater stakes. Fight for the Future protested the use of this technology when it was being tested in Philadelphia last season, and nine other groups that focus on privacy issues joined them in signing a petition decrying Go-Ahead Entry. More protests are expected at ballparks this season.
Other instances are less egregious -- and often have noble intentions but could still raise concerns over what actually happens to fans' data once they turn it over. In Brazil, for example, soccer teams using similar software have given to the police, upon request, data that was collected as part of a fan ID program. Facial recognition cameras were used all over streets and at stadiums to monitor fans throughout the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Teams aren't using fans' faces or their biometric data for security or any other purpose than stadium access, and they aren't selling that data to any other companies. Even with that separation, there is always a risk from hackers. And while both MLB and NEC say the separation of data considerably lessens the impact of a theoretical hack, George pointed out that potentially losing control over a person's basic biometric data is clearly more significant than having a password or credit card -- something that can be changed or replaced -- compromised by a hack.
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