Disney sued over facial recognition technology at California parks

A class-action lawsuit has been filed against The Walt Disney Company over Disneyland’s use of facial recognition technology at park entrances.

The suit, filed Friday on behalf of lead plaintiff Summer Christine Duffield, alleges that the company does not adequately disclose its use of the technology and is not transparent about how the collected data will be used.

Duffield, who is from Riverside County, California, visited Disneyland and Disney California Adventure Park on May 10 and May 14, attorney Blake Hunter Yagman said. He said the lawsuit was prompted by Duffield’s concerns about her privacy rights.

The class-action is seeking at least $5 million.

“When American families and their children visit a theme park, let alone a brand that’s as ubiquitous as Disney, they shouldn’t sacrifice their privacy rights when they enter,” Yagman said in a statement. “And as facial recognition becomes more common, and it proliferates in public places, especially, it’s more important than ever that we protect people’s privacy rights, because there are civil rights implications and privacy implications to collecting someone’s biometric information, especially without adequate consent, which is what we’ve alleged. So we look forward to litigating our case in court.”

The Walt Disney Company did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.

On its website, Disney said that its use of the technology helps with reentry to the parks and prevents fraud. It said that guests can use lanes equipped with facial recognition technology at the entrances to Disneyland and Disney California Adventure Park. These lanes use images of a person’s face captured by a camera at the entrance, along with the image of the person’s face saved when they first used their ticket or pass.

All data is deleted within 30 days, according to Disney.

“Participation is optional. Entrance lanes that do not employ facial recognition technology are also available,” Disney said on its website. “To use this service, please choose an entrance lane displaying ‘Entrance’ on overhead signage when you enter our parks.”

The suit argues that guests should be able to “expressly opt in to this type of sensitive facial recognition technology with written consent.”

The lawsuit, citing the Los Angeles Times, says the park has small signs at some security checkpoints notifying guests of the facial recognition policy, “but the sign is adorned with red, green, yellow, and blue Mickey Mouse silhouettes and is very easy to miss.”

“For guests who wish to avoid this invasive technology, there are unclear separate entrances which have a slash through a silhouette of a head and shoulders as if that constitutes a meaningful way to opt from facial recognition collection,” the suit says.

The class-action comes amid concerns about tracking and mass surveillance in public spaces. Other companies, including Amazon and Meta, have faced similar lawsuits. Last year, a Detroit woman filed a federal lawsuit against the police department, alleging that faulty facial recognition technology led to her unjust arrest.

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