823
submitted 8 months ago by Ninjazzon@infosec.pub to c/privacy@lemmy.ml

A set of smart vending machines at the University of Waterloo is expected to be removed from campus after students raised privacy concerns about their software.

The machines have M&M artwork on them and sell chocolate and other candy. They are located throughout campus, including in the Modern Languages building and Hagey Hall.

Earlier this month, a student noticed an error message on one of the machines in the Modern Languages building. It appeared to indicate there was a problem with a facial recognition application.

"We wouldn't have known if it weren't for the application error. There's no warning here," said River Stanley, a fourth-year student, who investigated the machines for an article in the university publication, mathNEWS.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[-] fidodo@lemmy.world 5 points 8 months ago

We need open standards for data storage so we can have more freedom in how our data is stored.

[-] Kolrami@lemmy.world 3 points 8 months ago

Absolutely. Nowadays you could afford an external hard drive to store such a small amount of videos. Plus, it gives you the benefit of having fewer eyes on your data. The notion of storing data on the cloud turns me off of having certain indoor cameras.

[-] Neosnc@lemmy.world 3 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

https://lemmy.world/c/selfhosted is pretty great for finding open source alternatives to commercial apps.

[-] fidodo@lemmy.world 2 points 8 months ago

Definitely, but I'd like to see more accessible solutions for less technical people, and that's possible with inter operative standards. It would be great if regulatory bodies required that all hardware supported at least one open standard.

this post was submitted on 23 Feb 2024
823 points (99.5% liked)

Privacy

32015 readers
1020 users here now

A place to discuss privacy and freedom in the digital world.

Privacy has become a very important issue in modern society, with companies and governments constantly abusing their power, more and more people are waking up to the importance of digital privacy.

In this community everyone is welcome to post links and discuss topics related to privacy.

Some Rules

Related communities

Chat rooms

much thanks to @gary_host_laptop for the logo design :)

founded 5 years ago
MODERATORS