Madison Square Garden Is Scanning Customers' Faces, Report Says

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — Madison Square garden has installed face-scanning equipment in an effort to bolster its security systems, according to reports.

The technology, which scans customers' faces in order to identify whether they pose a security threat, was installed in the Midtown Manhattan venue in recent months, sources familiar with Madison Square Garden's security operation told the New York Times. The sources, who talked to the Times anonymously, were unsure how many events the technology has been used for.

A spokesman for Madison Square Garden told the Times that the venue "continues to test and explore the use of new technologies to ensure we’re employing the most effective security procedures to provide a safe and wonderful experience for our guests."

It's unclear how many events the technology has been used for and the extent of its usefulness, the Times reported. Similar technology has been used by law enforcement agencies, but those agencies have access to databases that private companies such as Madison Square Garden would not be able to use, the Times reported.

The technology presents an ethical dilemma, an analyst with the American Civil Liberties Union told the Times. Patrons of Madison Square Garden — which hosts the New York Knicks and Rangers, high-profile concerts and other sports and entertainment events — shouldn't have to comprise their privacy to attend an event in the arena, the analyst said.

"I should know if I am being subject to facial recognition if I am going into any business, including a stadium," the ACLU's Jay Stanley told the Times. "Even if you are just running my face against a list of people who have been banned from the premises and doing nothing else with it. I want to know. I have a right to know."

Read the full New York Times article here.

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