EDMONTON -- Alberta's privacy commissioner said she is considering an investigation into a pilot project that where ID scanning technology has been installed in an Edmonton liquor store.
The pilot was launched on Monday by Edmonton police and Alcanna Inc., which owns Liquor Depot, Ace Liquor and Wine and Beyond.
The PatronScan entry system has been installed at one store in northeast Edmonton, and will prevent customers from accessing the store without scanning a government issued ID card.
"We have at no point been consulted on this pilot project announced by Alcanna and Patronscan. The assertions by the companies that the identification scanning system used in liquor stores complies with privacy laws in Alberta are misleading. An independent analysis of the technology being used in the pilot project has not been completed by our office," a written statement from the office of the commissioner read.
"We heard in media reports that this technology has been "approved" by Alberta’s privacy commissioner, that it had a complaint pertaining to this use of the technology resolved in Alberta, and that it had a privacy assessment reviewed on this project – none of which appear to be true."
The commissioner said Monday was the first time she heard about the pilot project.
A spokesperson for Alcanna said on Monday that they hope the project will make stores safer for patrons and employees alike, as well as cutting down on the use of police resources.
