Iceland has become the latest retailer to use facial recognition cameras in a bid to tackle theft and violence against shopworkers.
The frozen food retailer has begun trailing the cameras in two stores ahead of a planned wider rollout.
The technology is provided by Facewatch, which also counts Home Bargains, B&M, Frasers Group – including Flannels, House of Fraser, Sports Direct and Evans Cycles – and a number of convenience retailers such as Southern Co-op among its customers.
A specialist camera scans people’s faces as they enter the store and checks for a match on a database of ‘subjects of interest’ deemed to have committed a crime previously. Store staff are sent an alert when a match is detected, including suspects believed to have committed a crime in a store operated by another Facewatch retail customer.
If a match is not detected then the shopper’s facial recognition data is immediately deleted.
To add subjects of interest to Facewatch’s database, retailers must upload an image of a suspect and complete a formal witness statement. Facewatch then reviews the submission to assess whether the criteria has been met.
The trial is underway in a Food Warehouse store on Manningham Lane in Bradford and a core Iceland store in Salford.
Iceland said it expected to expand it to up to six stores by October 2025 and roll it out further after that. It said the trial followed a comprehensive due diligence process and initial planning that began last year.
It said Facewatch’s system had been reviewed thoroughly by the Information Commissioner’s Office and it believed the tech provider’s status as a ‘data controller’ made it a robust and compliant partner.
Read more: Home Bargains tackling theft with AI cameras that spot unscanned items at checkouts
Iceland said that by alerting trained staff to the presence of repeat offenders it would enable early and non-confrontational intervention. It said it anticipated a 30% reduction in violent incidents in stores using the technology.
“Following a robust due diligence process, we can confirm that our facial recognition trial is now live in two stores and will expand further this year,” said an Iceland spokesperson.
“This is part of our continued investment in tackling violent retail crime and protecting the safety of our colleagues and customers.”
Iceland executive chairman Richard Walker gave an early indication the retailer was considering the tech last year, saying on LinkedIn he would “happily trial and use legal, proportionate facial recognition technology as an effective response to the very real threat my colleagues face”.
The system is proven to reduce theft by at least 35% in the first year of deployment, according to Facewatch.
Facewatch differs from Faicetch, an alternative system deployed in five Asda stores since March, in that Faicetech acts as the data processor, while the retailer takes on the data compliance obligations of data controller.
The use of facial recognition cameras in retail has been criticised by privacy campaign group Big Brother Watch, which submitted a complaint to the ICO about Asda’s trial in May.
The campaign group hired a digital display van to circle the stores, displaying the message ‘Asda – Rolling back your privacy’.
There have also been cases of shoppers discovering they have been erroneously added to Facewatch’s database. The BBC reported last week that a woman had been escorted from two Home Bargains stores based on a false report of theft.
Danielle Horan’s bank statements showed the item had been paid for, and Facewatch acknowledged a review of the incident showed she had not committed a theft.
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