US EditionWegmans Uses Facial Recognition in Some 'High-Risk' Stores
Wegmans uses facial recognition in select stores to identify previously flagged individuals and deter misconduct, complying with NYC signage laws amid rising retail theft, experts say.
- On Monday, Wegmans confirmed it is scanning shoppers' faces in a small fraction of stores to combat theft, expanding a 2024 pilot with signage at Manhattan and Brooklyn locations.
- Loss‑prevention experts say a 19% shoplifting rise from 2023–2024 has led retailers to adopt facial recognition, with Wegmans noting it as a tool for identifying repeat offenders.
- A Wegmans spokesperson said the system scans faces and compares images to people previously flagged for misconduct, with the asset protection team making case-by-case decisions and retaining images only as long as necessary.
- On Wednesday, Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz wrote `I find it very troubling that Wegman's and other retailers are using facial recognition and other biometric technology to collect data on their customers` and directed staff to prohibit such data collection.
- Privacy advocates warn that stored biometric data could be breached or misused, including by immigration authorities, while Maryland's Online Data Privacy Act took effect Oct. 1, 2025, exempting processing before April 1, 2026.
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72 Articles
Facial recognition -- at the airport and beyond
OMG! Wegman’s supermarkets are using artificial intelligence and facial recognition? Outrageous! Alert the authorities! Cancel dinner! Never mind the fact that on your way to shop you passed by dozens of video cameras and license plate readers. Or the fact that your cellphone has been constantly pinging your location enroute. Attention shoppers: you have no privacy! Supermarkets are not alone in their use of this tech. CVS, Home Depot, Macy’s,…
Daily Local News
Is Wegmans watching you? Chain says it’s using facial recognition technology in some stores
By Sue Gleiter, pennlive.com (TNS) Popular grocery store chain Wegmans has implemented facial recognition technology at some of its stores. Wegmans confirmed in a statement it has deployed cameras to collect data in “a small fraction of stores that exhibit elevated risk.” The Rochester, N.Y.-based chain didn’t say whether the technology is being used at its Pennsylvania locations. The company emphasized the surveillance has been employed to keep…
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