Today, CCTV cameras are everywhere, including conference rooms. Some are used to identify and track attendees (called facial recognition), while others are analyzing the entire group to measure their participation in the meeting.
This practice, called facial analysis, made some participants feel uncomfortable and even unhappy, so that they were under surveillance without their consent.
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Here are a few things to consider in this ever-evolving technology.
The facial analysis system does not require consent.
If data collected that can be used to identify you personally, consent is required. This is called “personally identifiable information” or “PII”. While this usually includes things like your name, address, and email, it also includes a biometric template or signature based on your face.
However, since it neither creates biometrics nor produces shops or transmits videos containing videos of people’s faces, no legal consent is required. “We’re not looking at one person’s reaction; we’re looking at everyone’s reaction.” said Panos Moutafis, CEO and co-founder of Zenus, which provides video-based facial analysis.
Nevertheless, participants should be informed that the technology is being used.
Most importantly, let people know in advance that you are using technology to build trust. It can also resist any liability from a privacy or security perspective.
Storing biometric signatures in a database is a security risk.
Even if everyone chooses to come in, there is a risk of damaging the data. If this happens, you can compare these signatures to images on Facebook, LinkedIn, or other social media.
Setting parameters is crucial.
To avoid ethical implications, organizations need to clearly define the type of data collected and the purpose of deployment. An example is focusing only on aggregated dwell time and reactionary data to analyze which educational meetings and experiences resonate with attendees.
Follow these established best practices:
- The technology is very intentional to avoid collecting data that could put participants at risk.
- Ask your technical partners to help you determine safety and ethical practices.
- Carefully identify the service provider’s security credentials and review their privacy policies.
- Education your attendees for their use, how it works, and whether there are any privacy implications. On the side of overcommunication.
- When you deal with information, participants may consider it sensitive, and build trust through transparency and choice.
