Reports in the local media have revealed that several Queensland gambling license holders are currently testing facial recognition technology to monitor banned customers and those who have placed themselves on a self-exclusion list.
When addressing plans to give the government more power to implement harm minimization measures and issue greater fines, Clubs Queensland chief executive Craig Harley said of the technology:
“the industry is funding, building and now trialing a MVSE [multi-venue exclusion] platform which will greatly enhance a licensee’s ability to monitor excluded patrons”.
Queensland Hotels Association chief executive Bernie Hogan added that many of the regions gambling license holders had already invested heavily in the platform at a “substantial cost” in a bid to minimize the risks and harms of problem gambling.
“Benefits will include the ability to manage wide area exclusions; have remote exclusions capability and near 100 per cent effectively reliable enforcement of bans through the establishment of networked facial recognition technology.”
The technology has divided opinions in Australia following a consumer group investigation’s findings that a number of major Australian retailers including Kmart and Bunnings were using similar software to create ‘face prints’ of customers without their knowledge or prior consent.
Star Entertainment, one of Australia’s largest gambling companies who is currently under investigation for money laundering activities, has already implemented the technology in its Sydney casino.
London based reporter covering all aspects of the global regulated and unregulated land-based and online gambling industry - including business news, sports-betting, casinos, poker & regulation