Yahoo Finance Frustrated Coles customer’s act of defiance
“No one likes to be watched. Cameras impinge on our privacy."
A Coles customer sick of being recorded at the self-serve checkout has fought back by placing a special ticket over the camera, but does this make any difference?
A man has posted an image on X showing the defiant tactic he employed at a supermarket checkout when purchasing some blueberries, chocolate and salad mix this week.
“This is how I dealt with not wanting the camera on me at the checkout at Coles tonight,” he said.
But the reality is, you are being filmed from the moment you walk in the door, the time you spend scanning and when you leave. There are overhead cameras now monitoring how products are scanned, and what may have been left in your basket - whether it’s from that store or not is determined by a staff member who is flagged to investigate.
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The customer’s act may be more reflective of general frustration with ‘anti-theft’ measures being used in supermarkets across the country.
“No one likes to be watched. Cameras impinge on our privacy,” UNSW Business School professor Nitika Garg told Yahoo Finance. “We, as consumers, are unsure on how that data is being used. Not having an explanation or little reassurance is adding to the negative reaction.”
Both Coles and Woolworths have signage in store to advise customers of the new technology that’s been rolled out, and have addressed the “strict privacy protocols” they adhere to with any footage taken.
The supermarkets said AI technology at self-serve checkouts didn’t collect sensitive biometric data or keep personal information. Regardless, Digital Rights Watch has described the current level of surveillance used as “invasive”.
“Between CCTV, overhead and face cameras at checkouts, sensors and beacons that track people through stores, AI-assisted checkouts, smart gates, license plate recognition, data-hungry loyalty programs, and data-driven 'crime intelligence' software, supermarkets are an environment in which just an incredible amount of data collection and surveillance is happening,” program lead Samantha Floreani told Yahoo Finance.
She said shoppers should be able to do “basic life essentials” like shopping without being constantly tracked, but had little choice given how widespread the surveillance had become.
“These approaches add up to the normalisation of surveillance,” Floreani said. “Plenty of shoppers may not even be aware that it's happening and, even if they are and are uncomfortable with it, may have no choice but to continue to shop there because of the lack of competition.”
Interestingly, both supermarkets said the cameras in the self-serve checkouts did not record and footage was not saved. Neither have disclosed what the front-facing cameras’ exact purpose is, if it is not to record, but it’s likely purely as a deterrent, causing those who may be wanting to steal to think twice. But it is clear, many Australians do not like being tracked, filmed or monitored.
This comes as self-serve checkouts come under fire as a “failed” experiment that does not benefit the majority of consumers.
Associate professor and chair of sociology at Drew University in New Jersey, Chris Andrews, told 3AW businesses were now seeing consumers tending to themselves at the checkout as free labor. He suggested those unhappy should “vote with their pocketbooks” - and shop elsewhere.
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