--- title: "Students Horrified When Error Message Appears on Vending Machine, Revealing Something Dark" description: "The college students discovered that the facial recognition software was part of the vending machine's \"demographic profiling\" feature." date: "2024-02-23" modified: "2024-02-23" authors: - name: "Frank Landymore" job_title: "Contributing Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/flandymore" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/error-message-vending-maching-facial-recognition" categories: - "Future Society" tags: - "facial recognition" - "privacy" - "surveillance" - "the digest" --- # Students Horrified When Error Message Appears on Vending Machine, Revealing Something Dark ![The college students discovered that the facial recognition software was part of the vending machine's "demographic profiling" feature.]() *\Image: SquidKid47 via Reddit\* ## Facing the Facts Students at the University of Waterloo in Canada were disturbed when they accidentally discovered that the vending machines on campus had a hidden feature that they felt invaded their privacy, [reports *CTV News*]() — an eerie tale on how surveillance tech has crept its way into all kinds of "smart" appliances. On its surface, the M&M-branded machines seemed as innocuous as any other snack dispenser. Then, out of the blue last month, an error window appeared on their screens, referring to a facial recognition application that the students had no idea about. "We wouldn't have known if it weren't for the application error. There's no warning here," River Stanley, a senior UWaterloo student who investigated the vending machine for the campus newspaper, told *CTV News*. Unsettled by the idea of potentially being spied on, Stanley added that many students began to cover the tiny camera of the vending machines with chewing gum and sticky notes. ## Low Profiler The vending machines are manufactured by a company called Invenda — which markets them as "intelligent" vending machines — and are owned by the maker of M&Ms, MARS. Alarmed by the glitch, the students did some digging on the manufacturer. On its website, they found a brochure for the vending machines which revealed that they're installed with a "demographic sensor." Not only can the sensor perform a "people count," according to the brochure, it can also do "demographic profiling" which allows the machines to calculate the age and gender of anyone that approaches by using the camera. "\[I'm\] kind of shocked just because it's a vending machine, and I don't really think they need to be taking facial recognition," another student told *CTV News*. Invenda has defended itself by claiming these features are conducted in compliance with data privacy laws. "The demographic detection software integrated into the smart vending machine operates entirely locally," Invenda told Stanley in an email. "It does not engage in storage, communication, or transmission of any imagery or personally identifiable information." ## Vend Diagram Whatever legal technicalities, this is the kind of peak over-engineering that leaves people uneasy. A simple window showing you the snacks inside, apparently, is just too low-tech. Instead, Invenda's new era of vending machines use giant touchscreens to inundate you with combo deals, promotions, and "AI-powered production recommendations," in order to boost sales by up to 60 percent, the manufacturer claims. Understandably, the students weren't having it. Backlash ensued once word got out, and the university was forced to take action. "The university has asked that these machines be removed from campus as soon as possible," a UWaterloo spokesperson told *CTV News*. "In the meantime, we've asked that the software be disabled." **More on privacy:** *[Alarming New Satellite Can Spy on Individual People]()* ## Author At Futurism, my work has often centered on bringing a sense of clarity and insight to complex topics ranging from the regulation of emerging technologies to the esoteric ideologies of Silicon Valley executives, while striving not to lose the poetic sense of awe inspired by often-obscure fields like astrophysics and quantum computing. I broke the story of CNET using AI to produce articles that turned out to be riddled with factual errors and plagiarism — a dam-breaking inflection point, as I've reported, that's inspired copycats and endless discourse while beguiling stakeholders ranging from tech giants to purveyors of spam around the web. My work at Futurism has been cited by publications including CBS News, the Los Angeles Times, Vice, Gizmodo, Engadget, the Verge, and Vanity Fair. I grew up in locales ranging from India to China, and now live in the exotic suburbs of Virginia. In my free time, I'm an avid reader of weird sci-fi literature, an aficionado of East Asian cinema, and, regrettably, a relapsed gamer. Allegedly, I’m working on a debut novel, currently untitled. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()