Tesco's ‘VAR'-style self-checkout cameras are the final straw
Tesco has followed Sainsbury's lead by installing cameras above self-checkouts to identify when shoppers fail to scan an item properly, using the footage to provide a live-action replay of their misdeed. Predictably, it's not gone down well: a video posted on Instagram involving a can of tuna got more than 3.5 million views. When will the supermarkets learn to stop treating their shoppers like criminals?
Much of the reaction to Tesco's VAR (Video Assistant Referee) cameras has focused on Britons' humorous responses: 'VAR Decision – Tuna Disallowed,' joked one person. 'Clearly off side,' riffed another. But the growing surveillance in our supermarkets is no laughing matter.
Everyone needs to buy food and, with a 28 per cent share of the UK supermarket sector, Tesco is the UK's biggest grocery chain. Shoppers who don't want to be spied on are running out of options.
One customer, noticing the new systems in his local store in south-east London, has taken the matter seriously.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Wales Online
a day ago
- Wales Online
UK emergency alert to hit every phone with huge siren - everything you need to know
UK emergency alert to hit every phone with huge siren - everything you need to know The alarm aims to prepare the public for terrifying situations which could cause danger to life such as national security threats or extreme weather. (Image: Getty Images ) Britons are being advised to get ready for an emergency alert set to make mobile phones across the nation buzz as part of Government trials. The warning system is being put in place to prime the populace for potentially life-threatening events, such as severe weather or national security crises, reports the Mirror. With geopolitical tensions mounting between Russia and Western nations, as well as ongoing conflicts in the Middle East, another trial is scheduled for later this year. The aim is to ensure that the UK is equipped to handle all sorts of calamities, starting with familiarisation of the emergency alert protocol that authorities will trigger. This initiative follows its initial pilot phase in 2023. Read the biggest stories in Wales first by signing up to our daily newsletter here. The upcoming test alert message will read: "Severe Alert. This is a test of Emergency Alerts, a new UK government service that will warn you if there's a life-threatening emergency nearby. In a real emergency, follow the instructions in the alert to keep yourself and others safe. Visit for more information. This is a test. You do not need to take any action." When to expect the UK emergency alert trial The exact date for the impending trial has yet to be disclosed by officials, but confirmation is that it will take place later within the year. Following the test, these alerts will then be disseminated biennially to maintain a high level of emergency readiness among citizens. Article continues below What to anticipate during the emergency alert drill? Brits will know once an emergency alert is happening due to the steps which take place. Firstly, the word 'operator' will appear in the title. Additionally, your phone will emit a 'loud-siren' sound for approximately 10 seconds. Can you opt out of emergency alert tests? You can opt out but how you turn off the alert can be different depending on your phone manufacturer. This is how to opt out on an android Go on your phone's settings and look for 'emergency alerts' and turn off 'test alerts', 'exercise alerts', 'operator defined' and 'operator alerts'. How to opt out via other phones Article continues below Emergency alerts may appear under a different name. You can look for 'wireless emergency alerts' or 'emergency broadcasts'. Visit your settings and look for message and then 'message settings', followed by 'wireless emergency alerts' and then 'alert'. Alternatively, the switch off could be found under 'sounds' and then 'advanced' and then 'emergency broadcasters'. Another option is to click onto 'general settings' and then 'emergency alerts' What should you do in response to UK emergency alerts? There's no action required on your part. Emergency alerts are free and accessible without the need for WiFi or data connection.
Economist
3 days ago
- Economist
Will AI eat the advertising industry?
Mark Zuckerberg recently shook the advertising world with Meta's plans to allow brands to use AI to generate targeted advertisements on Facebook and Instagram. Importantly, no ad agency would be involved in the process. So is the writing on the wall for the traditional advertising industry? Will the next viral video campaign or earworm jingle be the brainchild of a computer, rather than the fabled advertising creatives celebrated in the TV show Mad Men? And if so, what lessons are there for other creative industries? Hosts: Ethan Wu and Mike Bird. Guests: Sir Martin Sorrell, founder of WPP and S4Capital; Brian Wieser, CEO of Madison and Wall; and The Economist's media editor Tom Wainwright.
BBC News
3 days ago
- BBC News
Meta admits wrongly suspending Facebook Groups
Meta says it is "fixing" a problem which has led to Facebook Groups being wrongly suspended - but denied there is a wider problem with its online forums, Group administrators say they have received automated messages stating, incorrectly, that they had violated policies so their Groups had been Instagram users have complained of similar problems with their own accounts, with many blaming Meta's artificial intelligence (AI) has acknowledged a "technical error" with Facebook Groups, but says it has not seen evidence of a significant increase in incorrect enforcement of its rules on its platforms more widely. One Facebook group, where users share memes about bugs, was told it did not follow standards on "dangerous organizations or individuals," according to a post by its group, which has more than 680,000 members, was removed but has now been admin, who runs a group on AI which has 3.5 million members, posted on Reddit to say his group and his own account had been suspended for a few hours, with Meta telling him later: "Our technology made a mistake suspending your group." Thousands of signatures It comes as Meta faces questions from thousands of people over the mass banning or suspension of accounts on Facebook and Instagram.A petition entitled "Meta wrongfully disabling accounts with no human customer support" has gathered almost 22,000 signatures at the time of writing on a Reddit thread dedicated to the issue features many people sharing their stories of being banned in recent have posted about losing access to pages with significant sentimental value, while others highlight they had lost accounts linked to their businesses. There are even claims that users have been banned after being accused by Meta of breaching its policies on child sexual have blamed Meta's AI moderation tools, adding it is almost impossible to speak to a person about their accounts after they have been suspended or News has not independently verified those a statement, Meta said: "We take action on accounts that violate our policies, and people can appeal if they think we've made a mistake." It said it used a combination of people and technology to find and remove accounts that broke its rules, and was not aware of a spike in erroneous account states on its website AI is "central to our content review process". It says AI can detect and remove content against its community standards before anyone reports it, while content is sent to human reviewers on certain occasions. Meta adds accounts may be disabled after one severe violation, such as posting child sexual exploitation content. "We take action on accounts that violate our policies, and people can appeal if they think we've made a mistake," a spokesperson social media giant also told the BBC it uses a combination of technology and people to find and remove accounts that break its rules, and shares data about what action it takes in its Community Standards Enforcement its last version, covering January to March this year, Meta said it took action on 4.6m instances of child sexual exploitation - the lowest since the early months of 2021. The next edition of the transparency report is due to be published in a few says its child sexual exploitation policy relates to children and "non-real depictions with a human likeness", such as art, content generated by AI or fictional also told the BBC it uses technology to identify potentially suspicious behaviours, such as adult accounts being reported by teen accounts, or adults repeatedly searching for "harmful" could result in those accounts not being able to contact young people in future, or having their accounts removed completely. Sign up for our Tech Decoded newsletter to follow the world's top tech stories and trends. Outside the UK? Sign up here.
