{"meta":{"exportedAt":"2026-10-26T07:47:03.888Z","formatVersion":2,"selection":{"q":"watchlist","system":"","harm":"","context":"","country":"","role":"","relation":"","evidence":"","year":"2026","response":"","severity":"","verification":"","view":"incidents","sort":"added"},"totalIncidents":1,"coverage":{"cases":1,"countries":1,"languages":1,"unknownLocation":0,"locationPending":0,"unknownLanguage":0,"unknownDate":0,"lawsuits":0,"regulatory":0,"minors":0,"coreRelations":0,"contextualRelations":1,"mixedRelations":0,"unknownRelations":0,"relationPending":0,"relationUnknown":0},"countingNote":"Distinct public cases in this selection. People counts apply within individual cases only; cross-case person overlap has not been resolved. No population incidence estimate.","affectedCountNote":"Interpret person counts with affectedCountStatus and the reported effects. Unquantified zeros are placeholders, not a measured zero.","source":"AI incidents","publisher":"NOPE","url":"https://nope.net/incidents","license":"CC BY 4.0"},"incidents":[{"id":"2026-chester-home-bargains-facewatch-shopper-told-to-leave-store","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"can you please put everything down and leave the shop now?","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"come up on our system called Facewatch as a shoplifter","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"he was told to leave his local Home Bargains store after the technology linked him to a theft, which he said had nothing to do with him.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"The 67-year-old said the incident, which happened in front of a group of people","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"A 67-year-old shopper at a Home Bargains store in Chester was told by a member of staff to put everything down and leave, with the words that the shopper had come up on the store's Facewatch system as a shoplifter, in front of other people.","causal_attribution":"The shopper's account to the BBC and, separately, to the Guardian. Home Bargains declined to comment to the Guardian and the BBC states it had been approached for comment."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"popped into Home Bargains one February lunchtime","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"22 February 2026","relation":"context","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The Guardian says one February lunchtime. The year is inferred from the BBC report of 22 February 2026.","causal_attribution":"The Guardian gives the month and no year. The year is inferred from the BBC report of 22 February 2026 and the GB News report of 23 February 2026, which treat the event as recent. The Guardian gives February for another shopper in the same article where PA gives 27 January, so its month wording is not exact for that case."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"He contacted Facewatch, which sent him his photo with words claiming he had put items into a bag and stolen them.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"revealed he had been incorrectly associated with a shoplifting incident on a previous visit to the shop.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"should not have been on the system and his image and \"the associated record\" had been permanently removed.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The shopper contacted Facewatch, which sent a photo with words saying items had been put into a bag and stolen. A subject access request showed the shopper had been incorrectly associated with a shoplifting incident on a previous visit to the store. Facewatch said the shopper should not have been on the system and that the image and associated record were permanently removed.","causal_attribution":"The shopper's account and a Facewatch statement relayed by the BBC. The Guardian rests on a separate interview with the same shopper. Facewatch does not say how the shopper came to be on the system."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"These cases relate to human error in the way processes were carried out in-store, rather than any failure of Facewatch’s technology.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"These three errors are extremely rare cases","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"Home Bargains \"has now completed a full review of the incident\"","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"Home Bargains and B&M declined to comment.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"we acted promptly as soon as the matter was brought to our attention","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"Home Bargains declined to comment when approached by GB News.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"Facewatch's chief executive told the Guardian, in a statement about the three shoppers the article describes (this shopper is one), that the cases related to human error in the way processes were carried out in store and not to a failure of Facewatch technology. Facewatch told the BBC that Home Bargains had completed a full review of the incident. Home Bargains declined to comment.","causal_attribution":"Facewatch describing its own system and its customer's conduct. The Guardian statement refers to \"the matters referenced\" and \"these three errors\", and the article names three shoppers, of whom this shopper is one. The full review outcome was not published."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"Home Bargains eventually issued him an apology and a £100 voucher as a “gesture of goodwill without admission”, on the condition that the details of the incident remain confidential.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"declined: “I just thought: ‘Really, you’re trying to buy my silence?’”","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"Home Bargains later issued the shopper an apology and a 100 pound voucher as a goodwill gesture without admission, on condition that details of the incident remain confidential. The shopper declined the offer.","causal_attribution":"Guardian account, most likely from the shopper. Home Bargains declined to comment. No second chain was inspected."},{"id":"c6","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"I thought I was going to be sick,","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"had left him feeling \"helpless\".","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"It was like I was guilty until proven innocent. It’s an awful feeling.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"He has called for an apology and said he just wanted \"to feel safe\" going into his local shops again.","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"I’m hyper aware of cameras everywhere now","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"The shopper reports feeling physically sick and helpless, describes an awful feeling of being treated as guilty until proven innocent, and says the shopper wants to feel safe going into local shops again and is now hyper aware of cameras.","causal_attribution":"The shopper's own statements to the BBC and the Guardian. No independent assessment was inspected."}],"effects":[{"label":"Told to leave a store in front of others as a shoplifter after being flagged on the Facewatch system, which Facewatch says should not have held a record for the shopper. Reported feeling physically sick, helplessness and ongoing unease about cameras.","claim_id":"c6","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn0e56wjz6wo","kind":"news","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"","independence_group":"shopper-account-and-facewatch-statements-home-bargains"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/may/03/guilty-until-proven-innocent-shoppers-falsely-identified-by-facial-recognition-struggle-to-clear-their-name","kind":"news","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"","independence_group":"shopper-account-and-facewatch-statements-home-bargains"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://www.gbnews.com/news/pensioner-kicked-out-home-bargains-facial-recognition-mistake-chester-news","kind":"news","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Rewrite of the BBC account with a separate Facewatch statement to GB News.","independence_group":"shopper-account-and-facewatch-statements-home-bargains"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["institutional_use"],"contexts":["everyday_life"],"unknowns":["The visit is recorded at year precision. The Guardian says one February lunchtime with no year, and the year is inferred from the BBC (22 February 2026) and GB News (23 February 2026) reports. The Guardian gives February for another shopper where PA gives 27 January, so its month wording may be approximate.","Whether the error lay in the watchlist entry, the face match or the in-store handling is not established. Facewatch attributes it to human error in store processes and also says the shopper should not have been on its system.","The earlier shoplifting incident to which the shopper was incorrectly linked is not described in the inspected sources.","Home Bargains declined to comment, so no retailer account was inspected. The outcome of its full review is not published.","Whether the shopper's request to see CCTV footage from Home Bargains and the police was met is not reported.","The Guardian account of the apology, voucher and confidentiality condition has no second chain.","All inspected sources trace to the shopper's interviews and Facewatch statements, so no claim is corroborated."],"geography":{"basis":"The BBC places the store in Chester under its North West and Cheshire coverage and quotes a spokesperson for the UK Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. The BBC describes the shopper as of Chester.","court_countries":[],"event_countries":["GB"],"affected_person_countries":["GB"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published under the 2026-09-15 charter as an ordinary adverse experience with an automated system. The BBC, Guardian and GB News reports were read in full from saved bodies and treated as one reporting chain (the shopper's interviews plus Facewatch statements). Claims stay at reported status and company statements are attributed. The shopper spoke publicly under their own name and is not named in this record.","reviewed_on":"2026-09-29"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"Staff told the shopper that the shopper had come up on the store's Facewatch system as a shoplifter, and Facewatch sent the shopper a photo with a written theft allegation. Facewatch said the shopper should not have been on its system and removed the record. Facewatch's chief executive attributes the cases in the Guardian article to human error in store processes. The inspected sources do not show whether the fault lay in how the shopper was added to the watchlist, in a face match or in the in-store handling.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["made_claim_about"]},"name":"Chester: shopper told to leave a Home Bargains store as a shoplifter after being flagged on the Facewatch system, which Facewatch later said should not have held a record for the shopper","summary":"A 67-year-old shopper told the BBC and the Guardian that staff at a Home Bargains store in Chester told the shopper to leave in front of other people because the shopper had come up on the store's Facewatch system as a shoplifter. Facewatch later sent the shopper a photo with words saying items had been put into a bag and stolen. Facewatch said the shopper should not have been on its system and that the image and associated record were permanently removed. The Guardian reports that a subject access request showed the shopper had been incorrectly associated with a shoplifting incident on an earlier visit, and that Facewatch's chief executive attributed the three cases in the article, which include this shopper's, to human error in store processes. Home Bargains declined to comment. The shopper reports feeling physically sick and helpless. The Guardian reports that Home Bargains later offered an apology and a 100 pound voucher on condition of confidentiality, which the shopper declined. The year of the visit is inferred to be 2026 from the BBC report of 22 February 2026.","incidentDate":"2026-01-01","incidentKind":"single_event","incidentDatePrecision":"year","exposurePattern":"single_interaction","reportedDate":"2026-02-22","aiSystem":"Facewatch facial recognition watchlist alerts (deployed by Home Bargains)","aiProduct":"Facewatch facial recognition","aiCompany":"Facewatch","severity":"low","verificationStatus":"unverified","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["psychological_distress","reputational_harm"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"The BBC and the Guardian report the shopper describing feeling physically sick and helpless after being told to leave a store as a shoplifter in front of others, and lasting unease about being recorded. Facewatch said the shopper should not have been on its system.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"disputed","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One shopper reported being told to leave and distressed. No other person is reported harmed in this account.","victimAgeRange":"adult","platformType":"other","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn0e56wjz6wo","primarySourceLabel":"BBC News (22 Feb 2026): Chester man accused of being thief after Home Bargains face scan alert","firstPublishedAt":"2026-09-29T21:15:52.8187+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-09-30T01:17:31.23933+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["historical-2026"]}]}