Commissioner investigating ID scanning technology at Alcanna-operated liquor stores

by Morinville News Staff

Alberta’s Information and Privacy Commissioner (OIPC) announced Thursday that it will investigate Alcanna Inc. and Patronscan’s pilot project to use identification-scanning technology to permit entry into liquor stores Alcanna operates.

Alcanna’s announcement on Monday, Jan. 20 is in light of a significant uptick in liquor thefts in Alberta. There were more than 9,500 liquor store thefts in Edmonton alone last year.

The Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner says it first heard of the pilot project in media reports about Alcanna and Patronscan news conference with the Government of Alberta and Edmonton Police Service.

The OIPC says it has not conducted an independent analysis of the technology used in this application.

“The investigation will determine whether the use of this technology in liquor stores is compliant with the Personal Information Protection Act, Alberta’s private sector privacy law,” the Office said in a media release Thursday.

A timeline for when a public report would be released is not known at this time.

On Monday, the UCP also announced it had established a working group to combat what the UCP says is a growing public safety threat posed by liquor store robberies and thefts.

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