Russia's X5 group, the country's leading food retailer, has announced the launch of a facial recognition payment system – and this latest expansion of the technology has sparked privacy and security concerns. 

The X5 group, which owns the Pyaterochka convenience stores and the Perekrestok supermarket chain, has launched the initiative in collaboration with the Visa payment system and Russia's state giant Sberbank, which is striving to become an IT company. 

"There are currently more than 5,500 self-checkouts equipped with the facial recognition module," said Mikhail Kucherenkov, head of X5 Retail Group's innovation lab. "We're planning a roll-out throughout the entire country in the near future." 

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The service has been launched in 52 Perekrestok supermarkets and will expand to a total of 150 by the end of March. The system will also be available in 30 Pyaterochka stores by the end of April, X5 innovation director Ivan Melnik told the AFP news agency. 

He said some 3,000 stores across Russia will feature facial recognition payment systems by the end of the year.

The age split

The service appeared to be winning the support of younger customers at a Moscow supermarket. 

"It's great because the 21st century is the era of technology," said 28-year-old banker Andrei Epifanov.

But he added that older people may not trust the new technology – not all senior citizens have embraced smartphone technology and prefer to use mobile phones with push buttons.

The facility will only be available at self-service checkouts for Sberbank customers after the bank recently allowed its users to set up facial recognition to pay from their accounts. 

And during the pandemic, customers will need to remove their facemasks "for a second to look into the camera," the companies behind the payment system said in a statement.

"This is convenient for customers since they don't have to carry a wallet or take their phone out of their pocket," Melnik said. "They can just use a button and pay with their face."

He said the system also ensures that facial recognition transactions are "encrypted and protected" and identity theft attempts are prevented by a 3D camera that measures the depth of a user's face.

Surveillance, security and privacy

Facial recognition is rapidly developing in Russia.

"This is really good because the 21st century is a century of technology, so I'm all for it," said Alfa Bank employee Andrei Epifanov. 

However, activists remain concerned over state surveillance as Moscow used its tens of thousands of surveillance cameras to monitor compliance with lockdown measures at the start of the pandemic.

The Roskomsvoboda digital rights NGO launched a campaign last year against the mass use of facial recognition by the authorities, highlighting abuses of the system, data leaks and lack of consent.

The public have differing opinions, but many are cautiously optimistic. 

"This service has only just been introduced, so it needs a little time to start functioning properly," said 55-year-old nanny Svetlana. "If it's really that useful, then I'll start using it myself, of course."

Video Editing: Pedro Duarte