Rite Aid prohibited from using facial-recognition technology as part of FTC settlement

Rite Aid Corp.
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-0.31%
said Tuesday it has reached a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission after the agency alleged the retail chain falsely tagged consumers, particularly women and people of color, as shoplifters. Rite Aid will be banned from using facial-recognition technology for surveillance for five years as part of the settlement. “We respect the FTC’s inquiry and are aligned with the agency’s mission to protect consumer privacy,” Rite Aid said in a statement. “However, we fundamentally disagree with the facial recognition allegations in the agency’s complaint. The allegations relate to a facial recognition technology pilot program the company deployed in a limited number of stores. Rite Aid stopped using the technology in this small group of stores more than three years ago, before the FTC’s investigation regarding the company’s use of the technology began.”