Madison Square Garden targeted privacy activists and critics of surveillance

It’s no secret that Madison Square Garden Entertainment CEO James Dolan has been publicly criticized It might put you on the list. Now, a leaked document reveals that the company has compiled a detailed dossier on activists who oppose facial recognition surveillance on its premises — and packed those dossiers with a staggering amount of their personal information.

The alleged document, titled “Facial Recognition Activists.docx,” was published after a group of hackers posted a file 45GB data cache They stole from MSG earlier in June, leaking 26 million customer records, including contact details and biometric or facial recognition data.

The news follows extensively Wired investigation From April that found Dolan, owner of the New York Knicks, running an expansive biometric surveillance network outside MSG venues, which includes Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall and the Beacon Theater. The company says it uses facial scanning technology to identify potential security threats, but its biometric surveillance practices have drawn sharp criticism.

Activists, civil rights groups and government officials have long warned against the deployment of facial recognition technology in… Entertainment places, Private homes and Public streets It strips individuals of anonymity. By collecting and storing a huge amount of sensitive data, these systems create digital paper trails that are highly vulnerable to security breaches.

In fact, MSG is now facing three class-action lawsuits stemming from the massive hack, According to the New York Times. The lawsuits say the company failed to adequately protect sensitive information and seeks damages for the breach, risk of identity theft and harm to privacy.

A representative for MSG Entertainment did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Targeting activists

According to what I reported 404 mediawhich downloaded and reviewed data leaked from the hack, the file tracking critics of facial recognition technology contains private data on three activists, including their backgrounds, contact information, social media posts and number of followers.

The individuals named in the document are prominent representatives of digital rights and privacy groups: Adam Schwartz, director of privacy issues at the Electronic Frontier Foundation; Albert Fox Kahn, founder of the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, or STOP; and Evan Greer, Director of Fight for the Future.

“Unfortunately, data breaches are an all-too-common feature of modern life, which is another reason why companies like Madison Square Garden cannot collect and store personal information about their customers,” Schwartz wrote in an email to CNET. “Biometric surveillance such as facial recognition is particularly dangerous, because we cannot change our faces and show them wherever we go.”

Fight for the future Official statement He said MSG is unable to protect the data it collects. “Big corporations can use surveillance technology to punish critics, exploit workers, and consolidate power, with no regard for the fundamental rights they trample in the process,” Greer wrote.

In a Press release about the incidentSTOP’s executive director, Michelle Dahl, said she was not surprised MSG blacklisted the organization.

“This company continues to double down on invasive surveillance practices, and we are rolling back them,” she said in a statement. “No company should track or exclude anyone from anywhere for exercising their right to free expression.”

Facial recognition backlash

Facial recognition cameras have been installed at MSG Entertainment’s New York City venues since 2018. In that time, several perceived enemies have been added to watch lists and removed from MSG-owned buildings.

Lawyers involved in lawsuits against the company have been placed on “exclusion lists” and are routinely excluded from ticketed events, according to multiple reports.

The practice came to light after a personal injury attorney accompanied her daughter’s Girl Scout troop It was removed from the Radio City Music Hall Rockettes show In November 2022. another lawyer revealed It has been removed from Madison Square Garden during a New York Rangers hockey game for the same reason.

At the time, Dolan compared his politics to the movie The Godfather. “If you file a lawsuit against us, we will ask you not to come,” he said.

Recent reports It also alleges that John Eversole, MSG Entertainment’s chief security officer, carried out a surveillance campaign on a trans woman who visited the company’s venues, with a former MSG security employee alleging this was carried out solely on the basis of her identity.

The woman was eventually banned following stalking accusations. Eversole allegedly wanted to keep her “away from the players.”

Dahl argued that the release of this dossier is one of several reasons why the New York City Council drafted legislation “to ban biometric surveillance in plazas and other public facilities.”

Daily monitoring

MSG Entertainment is just one example of the broader domestic expansion of surveillance that is eroding privacy in the US, including Big Tech’s use of targeted advertising Based on your online activity and Algorithms that track your mobile phone’s GPS location data.

Similar to the backlash against facial recognition technology in entertainment venues, Communities across the country The spread has been undone AI-powered license plate cameras flock They were installed without public input or approval. In some cases, opponents mobilized for this Putting cameras out of service. The map is now open source Cameras track the herd All over the country.

The clash highlights concerns about private companies aggressively collecting biometric data. Because these systems are now integrated into law enforcement networks, including federal and immigration agencies, concern about who controls our personal information continues to grow.

Even if you cut back on your use of personal technology, you can still be spied on and indexed By a passerby wearing smart glasses.