Tesco face-scanners criticised for âbrutal honesty and lack of tactâ
Tesco is facing heavy scrutiny today after several of its new âface-scannersâ were accused of delivering âunnecessary and offensiveâ suggestions to shoppers, with one woman being advised to âadd more low-calorie food items to her trolleyâ, followed by âevery little helps, I supposeâ, in a sarcastic tone. Accountant David Croft, the first to raise a complaint about the new technology, says he was left âupset and offendedâ after visiting his local superstore in Braintree on Sunday. âI grabbed a trolley, walked through the main doors, and that bloody face-scanner hacked into the tannoy system and shouted, âPong Alert! Pong Alert!  Fat man in the Chelsea shirt: All anti-perspirant deodorants half-price!â Unemployed mother of four and regular Tesco shopper, Emma Hughes, was also quick to raise a complaint after visiting her local Tesco Express in Chester. âIâve had a rough year, so Iâm not exactly looking my best at the momentâ, said the 32-year-old. âWhen I approached the till, I just heard a voice say: âAre you lost, love? Netto is that way. Try not to nick anything on your way outâ. I was so embarrassed. And Iâm pretty sure I heard it mumble âscroungerâ under its breath as I walked outâ. A spokesperson for Tesco said: âWe installed the new technology with the intention of collecting small pieces of information from individual customers, which we hoped would provide us with a broader business insight into more targeted and relevant marketing campaigns. It certainly wasnât installed to tell Sheila in our Dudley store to âsort her barnet outâ. It seems software is deciding what customers âneedâ, rather than what they âwantâ. Tesco have since announced they will discontinue the use of the machines with immediate effect, and the job of gossiping about shoppersâ buying habits and appearances will be given back to the checkout operatives.