The The Walt Disney Company is facing a class-action lawsuit over the use of facial recognition technology at the entrances of its Disneyland theme parks. The lawsuit claims the company violated visitors’ privacy and consumer protection rights by collecting biometric data without properly informing guests.
According to the filing, “Disney does not adequately disclose the use of their biometric collection, so consumers — which almost always include children — have no idea that Disney is collecting this highly sensitive data.”
The case was filed by New York attorney Blake Hunter Yagman on behalf of Summer Christine Duffield, who recently visited Disneyland and Disney California Adventure Park with her children.
CBC News contacted Disneyland for comment but had not received a reply at the time of reporting. However, a Disneyland Resort spokesperson told The Hill, “We respect and protect our guests’ personal information and dispute the plaintiff’s claims, which we believe are without merit.”
Disney introduced facial recognition entry systems at Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure Park in April. The company said the technology was designed to make park reentry easier and help reduce fraud.
Under the system, photos taken at designated entrance lanes are compared with images captured when a guest first uses their ticket or pass. Disney says those images are converted into “unique numerical values” rather than stored as standard photographs.
The company also stated that the data is deleted within 30 days unless it must be kept for legal or fraud-prevention reasons.
Disney maintains that “participation is optional.” Guests who choose not to use facial recognition can still enter through separate lanes, where employees manually check tickets. However, the lawsuit argues that the opt-out process is not clearly communicated.
The filing claims the signage alerting visitors about the technology is “very easy to miss,” and that the alternative entrances are limited and confusing. Referring to a report from the Los Angeles Times, the lawsuit states, “There are unclear separate entrances which have a slash through a silhouette of a head and shoulders as if that constitutes a meaningful way to opt out from facial recognition collection.”
The complaint also raises concerns about the risks tied to biometric information. It argues that facial data can easily be connected to personal records such as credit cards or government IDs, creating valuable information that could be exploited if a data breach occurred.
“Guests should be able to expressly opt in to this type of sensitive facial recognition technology with written consent — the onus of privacy rights should not be on the victim,” Yagman wrote in the filing.
Harnaik Singh Rathor is the Founder, Publisher, and Editor-in-Chief of StudioX News Canada, Canada's multilingual digital news network serving diaspora communities across 44 languages. With a background in media production, public relations, and multicultural communications, he founded StudioX Film and TV Corporation to bridge the gap between mainstream Canadian media and the country's diverse immigrant communities. He is a member of the Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ), RTDNA Canada, CPRS Vancouver, Unifor, NEPMCC, and the Canada Freelance Union. He holds CAVCO Personnel Number SINH0106. Based in Surrey, British Columbia. | LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/harnaiksinghrathor/ | Muck Rack: https://muckrack.com/harnaiksinghrathor | Email: editor@studioxnews.ca
