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Singapore's New Hotel Automation Stokes Big Brother Image

Raini Hamdi

Photo Credit: Singapore is seeing more arrivals despite surveillance. Hotels that use facial recognition technology to automate check-ins now have to send guest data to the immigration department. Skift / Raini Hamdi

Skift Take

A new system that enables the sharing of guest data between hotels and the authorities is meant to increase productivity at hotels. Really? Better communication is needed.

Some people call Singapore a surveillance state, or a city of sensors. That’s a long way from being dubbed a "fine city" for penalizing people for littering, chewing gum, jaywalking, and a host of other mundane things. You can spot sensors, cameras, and GPS devices in public spaces, although the government says it's part of its Smart Nation initiatives. A new law on "fake news," which gives the government the right to order social media sites to put warnings next to posts it deems false, recently came into effect. Now hotels choosing to use facial recognition technology to automate check-ins also have to send guest data to the immigration department. All this is making Singapore look just a bit mo

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