The SBB wants to specify the tender of their new hidden camera system. According to a statement from the beginning of February, this should rule out misunderstandings in the technically formulated tender documents. With the new customer frequency measurement system, no personal data is recorded and no facial recognition is used at train stations.
Blick and other media reported last week that the SBB wants to install video cameras with facial recognition at 57 stations to evaluate purchasing behaviour.
The railway company has now explained that it wants to know more precisely what customers are going through with the projectAnd where they reside. The anonymous counting data can help to set up pick-up stands or restaurants in the right places. In case of large crowds and danger, the security service can also be deployed more quickly.
Consumer protection criticized the plans
The number of users has been registered at larger train stations in Switzerland for more than ten years. Nowadays, sensors at the entrance and exit of the station measure the number of passers-by. The SBB has been in “a long time” contact with the Federal Data Protection Commissioner (FDPIC) for the new project.
Consumer protection questions the project. The new measurement system of the state-owned company must be able to recognize personal characteristics of visitors and at the same time comply with data protection requirements, the Consumer Protection Foundation said in a statement. It believes that this approach is not compatible with SBB’s public mandate.
Consumer Protection also warned that data would be collected everywhere, but tracking in the digital space would be the main issue. With its customer frequency measurement system, the SBB showed that this perception was shortened. Due to the new technical possibilities, there is also a need for a debate about tracing persons in public and publicly accessible space. (SDA)
Source:Blick
I am Liam Livingstone and I work in a news website. My main job is to write articles for the 24 Instant News. My specialty is covering politics and current affairs, which I’m passionate about. I have worked in this field for more than 5 years now and it’s been an amazing journey. With each passing day, my knowledge increases as well as my experience of the world we live in today.
