https://www.theregister.com/2021/06/10/mcdonalds_ai_lawsuit/ The Register(r) -- Biting the hand that feeds IT search [ ] # # Sign in Off-Prem All Off-PremEdge + IoTChannelPaaS + IaaSSaaS (X) On-Prem All On-PremServersStorageNetworksHPCPersonal Tech (X) Software All SoftwareAI + MLApplicationsDatabasesDevOpsOSesVirtualization (X) SecurityOffbeat All OffbeatDebatesColumnistsScienceGeek's GuideBOFHLegalBootnotesSite NewsAbout Us (X) Vendor Voice AdobeAmazon Web Services (AWS)Google CloudGoogle Cloud's Apigee NutanixRapid7Red hatSophosVeeamVirtru (X) # # # [aiml] AI + ML McDonald's AI drive-thru bot accused of breaking biometrics privacy law Would you like a lawsuit with that? Katyanna Quach Thu 10 Jun 2021 // 23:57 UTC Share reddit Twitter Facebook linkedin WhatsApp email [https://www.theregis] Copy 50 comment bubble on white --------------------------------------------------------------------- 50 comment bubble on white # reddit Twitter Facebook linkedin WhatsApp email [https://www.theregis] Copy McDonald's has been accused of illegally collecting and processing customers' voice recordings without their consent in the US state of Illinois. Like so many giant corporations, McDonald's has turned to AI technology to use computers in place of people. In 2019, it announced it had snapped up a voice-recognition company in Silicon Valley, previously known as Apprente and now McD Tech Labs, to build a voice-controlled chatbot for its drive-thrus. Earlier this month, McDonald's said ten of its restaurants in Chicago, Illinois, are testing this chatbot, and it may permanently replace human workers. As you'd expect, you yell your order at the system from your car, and it takes care of it. The software apparently has an 85 per cent accuracy rate. [aiml] Although the automated service may be convenient for the greasy-grub giant, Shannon Carpenter, a resident of Illinois, claims McDonald's is breaking the law. The state has some of the strictest data privacy laws; its Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) states: "No private entity may collect, capture, purchase, receive through trade, or otherwise obtain a person's or a customer's biometric identifier or biometric information." unless it receives written consent. [aiml] [aiml] Carpenter sued [PDF] McDonald's in April on behalf of himself and all other affected residents of Illinois. He claimed the fast-chow biz has broken BIPA by not obtaining written consent from its customers to collect and process their voice data, nor has it explained in its privacy policy how or if the data is stored or deleted. His lawsuit also stated that McDonald's has been experimenting with AI software taking orders at its drive thrus since last year. "Plaintiff, like the other class members, to this day does not know the whereabouts of his voiceprint biometrics which defendant obtained," Carpenter's lawsuit stated. Under the BIPA, people can receive up to $5,000 in damages from private entities for each violation committed "intentionally or recklessly," or $1,000 if each violation was from negligence instead. * Do you want fr-AI-s with that appy-meal? McDonald's gobbles machine-learning biz for human-free Drive Thrus * Apple sued in nightmare case involving teen wrongly accused of shoplifting, driver's permit used by impostor, and unreliable facial-rec tech * US Homeland Security sued for 'stonewalling' over use of Clearview facial recognition * TikTok to cough up $92m to settle data privacy sueballs over harvesting too much data The sueball also claimed the machine-learning software built by McD Tech Labs doesn't just transcribe speech into text, it processes audio samples to glean all sorts of personal information to predict a customer's "age, gender, accent, nationality, and national origin." Given just how many go to McDonald's, the lawsuit could get expensive for the corporation. "Plaintiff's estimate that the proposed class consists of 'thousands of members' renders the purported damages well in excess of the $5,000,000 threshold, even before potential attorneys' fees," the paperwork stated. [aiml] The Register has asked McDonald's for comment. (r) Get our Tech Resources Similar topics * MORE * Ai * Machine Learning Corrections Send us news 50 Comments reddit Twitter Facebook linkedin WhatsApp email --------------------------------------------------------------------- [aiml] Other stories you might like * As so many people work away from the office, Wi-Fi 6E is perfectly timed for connected homes, other wireless apps Wi-Fi 6/6E use-cases drive adoption as network refresh gains distinct advantages Khoo Boo Leong Sun 13 Jun 2021 // 22:00 UTC comment bubble on black Sponsored Wi-Fi 6E - the Wi-Fi Alliance's extension of the 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6) standard to use the 6 GHz band - is a timely and significant step toward enabling congestion-free and reliable connectivity. It will also serve as an immense impetus for wireless innovation in the connected home through the current COVID-19 pandemic. 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