Tenants of a housing development in Brownsville are fighting a new security initiative that they say is a violation of their privacy.
The landlord of Nelson Management Group has plans to install facial recognition technology at the entrance of 216 Rockaway Avenue – a system known as StoneLock.
The tenants have filed an objection to the plan with the New York State Home and Community Renewal agency, which oversees rent-regulated properties.
Samar Katnani, from the Brooklyn Tenants Rights Coalition, said, “The tenants have no ability to opt out, therefore the landlord is going to be controlling their biometric information, and really an unregulated area of the law."
In response, a spokesperson from Nelson Management Group told News 12 that the company is using “a leading provider of security technology for these upgrades” that has “assured ownership that data collected is never exposed to third parties and is fully encrypted.”
Wary tenants say they already have a security guard and don't believe this technology is appropriate for a residential building.