Australian retail giants named in facial recognition tech complaint

FILE PHOTO: Shoppers walk past stores of Australian electronic goods retailers JB Hi-Fi and the privately-held 100-store rival The Good Guys located in a shopping center in Sydney, Australia, May 19, 2016. REUTERS/David Gray/File Photo

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Three of Australia's biggest retail chains have been referred to the privacy regulator for recommended enforcement action by a major consumer group which has said they use "unreasonably intrusive" facial recognition technology on customers.

CHOICE, in a complaint to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) published on Monday, said use of the technology at JB Hi-Fi Ltd's appliances chain The Good Guys as well as hardware chain Bunnings and the Australian arm of big-box retailer Kmart - both owned by Wesfarmers Ltd - was unwarranted.