A set of smart vending machines at the University of Waterloo is expected to be removed from campus after students raised privacy concerns about their software.
The machines have M&M artwork on them and sell chocolate and other candy. They are located throughout campus, including in the Modern Languages building and Hagey Hall.
Earlier this month, a student noticed an error message on one of the machines in the Modern Languages building. It appeared to indicate there was a problem with a facial recognition application.
“We wouldn’t have known if it weren’t for the application error. There’s no warning here,” said River Stanley, a fourth-year student, who investigated the machines for an article in the university publication, mathNEWS.
Go to the vendors website, and not only see hole for yourself, but look at them claiming to use AI to detect demographics.
PDF Link: https://a.storyblok.com/f/184550/x/e7435c019e/brochure-svm_generic-dark-netflix-ui.pdf
Their website: https://www.invendagroup.com/vending-machines
Here’s my own screenshots in case the vendor takes their pdf down from bad press.
Hole: https://photos.app.goo.gl/rTk8fUWynmXgw7Zc6
AI Features: https://photos.app.goo.gl/RiF1Phrroj65tMdd7