The class-action lawsuit claims Disney improperly collected and stored guests’ biometric data, including from children, at park entrances.
WASHINGTON — Disney is being sued over allegations that it used facial recognition technology at Disneyland without guests’ knowledge, according to The Hollywood Reporter and The Orange County Register.
The lawsuit claims Disney violated privacy and consumer protection laws by collecting and storing biometric data of visitors without adequately disclosing the practice or meaningful consent.
According to the complaint, which was filed in federal court in California, Disneyland and Disney California Adventure began using the technology at park entrances in April to verify tickets and annual passes. The system photographs guests and compares those images with photos associated with their tickets or passes from their initial use.
The lawsuit claims most guests are unaware the technology is being used.
“Consumers, which almost always include children, have no idea that Disney is collecting this highly sensitive data,” the complaint states.
Disney has said the technology helps streamline park entry and reduce ticket fraud. The company’s privacy policy states that facial recognition data is deleted within 30 days unless it is needed for legal or fraud prevention purposes.
But the lawsuit disputes that claim, arguing Disney must retain the information longer in order to compare guests’ faces to images connected to previously purchased tickets or annual passes.
The complaint also alleges Disney failed to provide sufficient notice to visitors. While some entrances contain signs allowing guests to bypass facial recognition, attorneys for the proposed class said the notices do not amount to meaningful consent.
“Guests should be able to expressly opt in to this type of sensitive facial recognition technology with written consent,” attorney Blake Yagman wrote in the filing. “Given how sensitive facial recognition data is, explicit written consent should be required to protect the privacy of guests at Disney Theme Parks.”
Guests do have the ability to opt out of using the new facial recognition and can do so by using the parks’ main entrances along the Esplanade, where employees can manually validate tickets, Disney said in a message on its privacy webpage.
The lawsuit seeks at least $5 million in damages and aims to represent Disneyland visitors whose biometric data may have been collected.