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Amazon One Palm Print Collection Overview:
- Who: Senators Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn, Bill Cassidy, R-LA., and Jon Ossof, D-GA wrote a letter to Amazon President and CEO Andy Jassy.
- Why: The senators want information about the company’s policy of collecting biometric data as a part of the Amazon One palm print payment system.
- Where: The letter was sent from senators in Minnesota, Louisiana, and Georgia.
A trio of United States senators sent a letter to President and CEO Andy Jassy on Friday inquiring about his company’s policy of collecting biometric data from its users as a part of its new palm print payment system called Amazon One.
Biometric data is gathered by tracking an individual’s body movements and characteristics that uniquely define them. The science is used by governments to track individuals or groups that are under surveillance or by companies as a way to identify individuals.
The senators, Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn, Bill Cassidy, R-LA, and Jon Ossof, D-GA, are concerned that the data collected by Amazon’s recently launched palm-printed recognition payment system, Amazon One, could raise antitrust and privacy issues.
Amazon One devices are currently in more than 50 retail locations across the United States, including certain Whole Foods locations and Amazon Go stores. Consumers are able to make payments with Amazon One by using their palm print, which they must scan into the system along with their phone and credit card information.
Amazon has announced plans to expand the Amazon One program, which could include selling the information to third-party locations. The senators are concerned with how the company plans to protect consumer privacy and fears they may use it to track consumers and create advertising strategies.
The senators claim there is evidence that Amazon has shared voice data with third party contractors in the past and are also troubled by allegations that the company has previously violated biometric privacy laws.
Amazon faced a class action lawsuit in the state of Illinois last year after two plaintiffs alleged their facial scans, along with thousands of others, were illegally obtained by Amazon in order to improve their recognition software. This, they alleged, violated the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act, which was put in place in 2018 to guard against the unlawful use of collection and store of biometric information.
The senators also expressed concern with how Amazon One stores its data. Unlike similar biometric devices like Apple Face ID or Samsung Pass, which keeps collected data on a user’s personal device, Amazon uploads its data to the cloud, making it more susceptible to hackers, reports The Washington Post.
The senators concluded their letter by asking Jassy to answer multiple questions, including if he plans on expanding Amazon One and, if so, on what timetable. They also asked, among other things, if the company has ever sold information to a third party, what privacy protections are in place, and how many users have signed up with the service.
Would you feel comfortable signing up with Amazon One? Let us know in the comments!
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5 thoughts onAmazon One Palm Print Collection Questioned by Senators
Por favor, inclúyanme
Please add me to this litigation.
Please include me
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No I Definitely would NOT Feel Comfortable Signing Up !!!