Our digital Dick Tracey

There’s a lot of controversy surrounding Flock cameras. The cops say they help catch crooks. The civil libertarians say big brother is watching you. Some camera operators are using them to spy on girlfriends.

Turns out that retail stores have been using them to reduce “shrinkage,” aka shoplifting. But digital surveillance comes at a price.

“Sainsbury’s has paused the use of AI face scanning in one of its stores after a customer was wrongly identified as a shoplifter and ejected from the shop.

 

“I was embarrassed, mortified even, and felt quite humiliated and powerless,” Matt Arnold, 46, said of his ordeal.

 

“The comedy promoter was buying supplies in the store in East Dulwich, in south-east London, for a standup event at Dulwich Hamlet football club when, after scanning his items and a Nectar card, he was approached by two managers who told him he could not be served owing to an earlier incident. He was then asked to leave and they tried to escort him from the store.

 

“They simply told me they would be walking me out,” Arnold said. “At that point I did stand my ground and said I would be walking myself out. I was determined to keep some dignity. On this point, if nothing else, they did relent.”

*snip*

Sainsbury’s head office apologised to Arnold the next day and has paused use of its AI-assisted Facewatch technology in the store while an investigation takes place. But Arnold says the technology should be paused in all stores and he is worried about the extent to which AI is being used in society.

 

“Anyone could be falsely accused and at some point that will be someone vulnerable, someone with mental health issues like anxiety. It’s inevitable,” he said. “Also, I would worry about the confidence-destroying effect of it happening to a younger person or someone less willing or able to stand up for themselves as I have done.”

 

“The supermarket chain uses facial recognition technology to identify shoplifters and other criminals, and says this is to keep staff safe from abuse. But the tech has been plagued with issues. Last September another shopper, Warren Rajah, was ordered out of a branch in Elephant and Castle, south London, after being wrongly identified by the same Facewatch software. Similar cases have occurred including in Home Bargains and B&M stores.”

Our digital gumshoes aren’t quite ready for prime time, it seems.

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/aug/17/humiliated-sainsburys-store-pauses-ai-scanning-after-false-shoplifting-accusation

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