According to a report by Business Insider, Google is currently experimenting with a facial-recognition security system at its Kirkland, Washington campus. According to the company, this new system aims to enhance security by preventing unauthorized access through the use of internal cameras that collect facial data. The report also states that the company has assured that the data is used to identify potential security threats and is not stored for long periods of time. However, not all employees are happy with this new security system.

The Business Insider report quotes many employees as saying that they are not really comfortable with the idea of ​​their facial data being stored. For example, the report states that an employee at the Kirkland office explained that they found out about the new system through news reports and expressed concerns about privacy. Despite the blend of cameras with existing security infrastructure, there is a sense of uneasiness about the collection and potential storage of facial data, which many employees consider valuable and sensitive.

Employees at the Kirkland site cannot opt ​​out of facial checks upon entry, though a Google spokesperson clarified that the data is only used in real time and is not stored. Initially, the system compared facial data to ID badge photos, but that practice has been discontinued.

Although the technology is limited to the Kirkland campus for now, employees are curious whether it will eventually be implemented more widely. One San Francisco-based employee also speculated that the system could be used to monitor attendance at the office, although Google has denied any plans for such use.

However, not all employees are concerned about the new technology. The Business Insider report also quotes a New York-based employee who did not raise any concerns about privacy. The employee feels that the facial recognition system is an extension of existing security measures.

Related to this, Google has recently faced security challenges. In April this year, there were protests at some of the company’s offices over its contract with Israel.

Several Google employees in California and New York protested against the company’s work with the Israeli government. The employees were protesting against Project Nimbus, a cloud computing agreement between Israel and Google that was signed in 2021. The protests were held at various Google offices, including New York and California. The protesters were part of the No Tech for Apartheid movement, a group within Google that has been increasingly vocal about the company’s business decisions.

The protests escalated on Tuesday when a group of employees occupied the office of Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian for more than eight hours. They live-streamed their sit-in and stated their demands during a Twitch livestream. By nightfall, a company official contacted the protesters and told them they had been put on administrative leave and urged them to vacate the premises.

When the employees refused to leave, police were called to the scene and the employees were arrested.