Your Grocery Store Is Scanning Your Face

Wegmans deployed facial recognition in NYC. CVS, Macy's, Target, and Walmart already do the same. Legislation can't keep up.

TL;DR: Walk into a Wegmans in New York City and your face gets scanned. The grocery chain quietly deployed facial recognition cameras at its Manhattan and Brooklyn stores, collecting biometric data on every shopper who walks through the door. Wegmans isn't alone: CVS, Home Depot, Macy's, Target, and Walmart all use similar systems. New York City's 2021 disclosure law requires a sign on the door. That's it. No consent required. A bill to ban the practice has stalled in City Council since 2023. State-level legislation hasn't moved either. Meanwhile, the NYCLU warns that immigrant New Yorkers now have to worry about their biometric data ending up in the hands of ICE.

What Wegmans Is Doing

In early January 2026, shoppers at Wegmans' NYC locations noticed new signage: the store was collecting data on their faces, eyes, and voices [1]. The information is used to "protect the safety and security of our patrons and employees," according to the posted notices.

Wegmans spokesperson Deana Percassi confirmed the deployment: "Like many retailers, we use cameras to help identify individuals who pose a risk to our people, customers, or operation. In a small fraction of our stores that exhibit an elevated risk, we have deployed cameras equipped with facial recognition technology" [2].

Here's what Wegmans says about the system:

  • Deployed in stores across "a handful of states" (they won't say which ones)
  • Targets people "previously flagged for misconduct"
  • Claims no retinal scans or voice prints are collected (despite the signage mentioning eyes and voices)
  • Images retained "only as long as necessary" (exact period undisclosed)
  • Data not shared with third parties
  • "Facial recognition technology serves as one investigative lead. We never base our decisions on a single lead alone"

Read that again: they say the system only flags people with prior misconduct records. But it has to scan everyone's face to check that. Every grandma buying bananas. Every teenager grabbing snacks. Every undocumented worker picking up groceries.

Wegmans Isn't Alone

This is the part that should worry you more than any single grocery chain. Gothamist's investigation found that Wegmans is far from the only retailer running facial recognition in New York City [3]. The list includes:

  • CVS
  • Home Depot
  • Macy's
  • Target
  • Walmart
  • Fairway

In other words, walk down any major retail street in New York and your face is being scanned, matched, and stored, possibly at every store you enter.

The Law That Doesn't Protect You

New York City is actually one of the few places that requires any disclosure at all. A 2021 city law mandates that businesses collecting biometric data post signs informing customers [4]. The law also prohibits selling or sharing the collected data.

Sounds decent on paper. Here's the problem: the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection has admitted it has no enforcement mechanism if a company doesn't comply. No audits. No penalties for ignoring the sign requirement. No way to verify if retailers are actually following the no-sharing rule.

The federal government doesn't regulate biometric information at all. Most states don't either. So outside of a few cities and states like Illinois (with its BIPA law), retailers can scan your face with zero legal obligation to tell you.

"Ban the Scan": The Bill That Can't Pass

NYC Council Member Shahana Hanif introduced the "Ban the Scan" bill back in 2023, after Madison Square Garden CEO James Dolan used facial recognition to identify and eject attorneys whose firms had active litigation against his company [5]. The bill would make using biometric tech in public-facing businesses flat-out illegal.

"Biometric data should not be collected, stored, or sold by private actors. It poses a serious threat to our civil liberties," Hanif said. "I'm reintroducing this bill and I am hopeful it will move forward in the new session."

The bill has been stalled for over two years.

At the state level, Senator Rachel May (D-Syracuse) sponsored S8004, which would ban biometric surveillance in "places of public accommodation" like grocery stores [6]. Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal has a separate bill requiring "clear notice and privacy protections when retailers use tracking or biometric technology."

Neither bill has moved.

Why This Is Worse Than You Think

Michelle Dahl, director of the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, cut through the corporate talking points: "If there is a hack or breach, you can't change your face like you would change a password" [2].

She also flagged the accuracy problem. These systems "disproportionately misidentify" people from marginalized communities, particularly people of color, and especially women of color. Senator May echoed this: "We know that biometric surveillance is much more accurate with certain demographics than others, and so we end up with a lot of mistaken identity and false flags" [6].

Remember Rite Aid? In 2023, the FTC hit them with a five-year ban on facial recognition after finding the chain falsely accused customers of crimes and unfairly targeted people of color [7]. The same technology Rite Aid got banned from using is now running in your Wegmans.

And then there's the immigration angle. Daniel Schwarz of the NYCLU put it bluntly: "It's really chilling that immigrant New Yorkers going into Wegmans and other grocery stores have to worry about their highly sensitive biometric data potentially getting into the hands of ICE" [3].

In a city where federal immigration enforcement is expanding, and where ICE has been hiding behind masks to avoid identification, giving retailers a database of shoppers' faces isn't just a privacy issue. It's a safety issue.

What You Can Do

Right now:

  • Look for signage. Under NYC's 2021 law, retailers must post if they're collecting biometric data. If there's no sign, report the business to the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection.
  • Shop elsewhere. Retailers respond to lost revenue, not complaints. If your grocery store scans your face, find one that doesn't.
  • Wear a mask. Still effective against facial recognition systems, and it's legal.
  • Support "Ban the Scan." Contact your NYC Council member and ask them to co-sponsor Shahana Hanif's legislation.
  • Support state bills. New York residents can push for Senator May's S8004 and Assemblymember Rosenthal's bill requiring retailer transparency.
  • File FOIL requests. Ask your local retailers what facial recognition vendor they use, how long they retain data, and who has access.

For everyone outside NYC: You probably have fewer protections. Check if your state has a biometric privacy law. If it doesn't, assume every major retailer you walk into could be scanning your face, because they have no legal obligation to tell you.

References

  1. Gothamist - "NYC Wegmans is storing biometric data on shoppers' eyes, voices and faces" (January 2026)
  2. CBS News - "Some Wegmans locations, including 1 in NYC, are now using facial recognition software on customers" (January 2026)
  3. Gothamist - "Not just Wegmans: More NYC retailers using facial recognition as tech outpaces law" (January 2026)
  4. WXXI News - "Wegmans using facial recognition technology in 'a small fraction' of stores across multiple states" (January 5, 2026)
  5. Gothamist - "Wegmans defends use of facial recognition at NYC stores, citing 'elevated risk'" (January 2026)
  6. Central Current - "A bill sponsored by a Central New York state senator could stop biometric surveillance at stores like Wegmans" (January 2026)
  7. FTC - Rite Aid facial recognition enforcement action (2023)