For Taylor Swift, the controversial Madison Square Garden cameras briefly went dark

Madison Square Garden Owner James Dolan has insisted on a facial recognition system and a set of surveillance cameras scattered in its places “Very, very useful for security” – which is a big number a reason Why MSG “is the safest place in the country.”

On the night of July 2, security measures in and around the park were particularly intense. Nearly 130 police officers were deployed in the area. New York City officials were preparing to close the surrounding blocks to vehicles and pedestrians the next day for a major public event.

July 2, of course, was the start of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s wedding, which was a rehearsal dinner for about 100 people at the Infosys Theater in Madison Square Garden. However, on that highly sensitive evening, Dolan’s MSG locked nearly all of its security team out of the surveillance camera network inside the arena, according to an internal document reviewed by WIRED. Two sources familiar with park operations say the move functionally prevented MSG security from fully operating the venue’s controversial facial recognition software that evening.

While the shutdown order reviewed by WIRED only applied to July 2, those sources add that they were told the shutdown was repeated on July 3, the night of Swift and Kelce’s wedding, which attracted nearly 1,000 of the biggest names in media, music, business and sports.

At every stage of the planning, the Swift and Kelsey teams went to extraordinary lengths to keep what happened inside the park private. The guests had to do that Signing a non-disclosure agreement Before they can receive a digital invitation. Tents It’s set up for parking, so people can get in and out in relative anonymity (and, presumably, avoiding the biometric monitoring equipment stationed at standard entrances). Wedding attendees were told there was a no phone policy. The only detailed description of the event posted by the wedding night guest was Deleted quickly.

According to the internal document, an MSG executive on July 2 ordered a seven-hour shutdown of the Garden’s video management system, operated by security technology company Genetec, “due to a customer privacy request.” Security staff monitoring the building’s internal cameras and accompanying facial recognition software were prevented from doing so. The memo states that only a few company leaders and engineers were allowed access to their Genetec accounts. The rest were “disabled.”

“If you still have access to the cameras somehow after 3 p.m., you will be forcibly logged out,” the document warned MSG security personnel.

Since 2018, Dolan The company has piloted biometric surveillance at its venues, which include Radio City Music Hall and the Beacon Theater in New York, as well as the Sphere in Las Vegas. The organization stresses that this technology is a security measure, but there are several publicly documented cases where the facial recognition system appears to have been aimed at something else: revenge.

The faces of fans who criticized Dolan were photographed and then placed on watch lists. A A lawyer represents a policeman He was banned in April because his client filed a lawsuit against MSG. Or try to take it then 9 year old girl scout To a Christmas show at Radio City Music Hall she was tagged in the face and denied entry. The reason: She was an attorney, and her firm was in a legal dispute with one of the entities controlled by Dolan.

Genetec’s software serves as the backbone of MSG’s video security system, monitoring streams from various cameras and allowing security staff to manage applications that rely on those streams, including facial recognition. Cameras at guest entrances are linked to a facial recognition system he designed eConnect. If someone’s face triggers an alert, Genetec then allows that person to be easily tracked via the camera network. According to a person familiar with the security surveillance setup, “This makes it very easy to track the person, because we can jump from one camera to another in real time and follow them.”

like WIRED previously reportedPark security uses these systems for surveillance Transgender woman Second by second when she was in the arena. Cameras even noticed her entering and leaving the bathroom.