Why are face scanners popping up at these gay bars in San Francisco?
Envato, Crawl SF
Gay men in San Francisco’s Castro are encountering an unexpected hurdle on a night out.
In several popular gay bars, a photo ID is no longer enough. You also have to submit to a face scan.
San Francisco Gazetteer reporter Cydney Hayes investigated the scanners after an incident at a Castro bar.
Hayes reported that Mix, along with other Castro venues including Badlands and Toad Hall, are using face scanners made by a company called PatronScan.
According to one Reddit user, a violent incident involving an angry patron at Mix last year prompted the bar to install the Guard+ model, which is marketed to owners as a way to catch fake IDs and keep track of unruly customers.
The machines also collect information from patrons including names, addresses, genders, and even details of how they behave inside the venue. That data is then shared across a connected network of similar machines in nearby bars. The stated aim is to keep owners informed of a “blacklist” of problem guests, but the reality is starker. The scanners reportedly delete collected information after 30 days, unless a patron is flagged for “bad behaviour,” in which case it remains in the database.
The company behind the technology has faced several legal challenges over what critics describe as a misleading surveillance model. One class-action lawsuit went so far as to label the technology “Orwellian.”
Adding to the unease is the fact that Mix is gay-owned, which raises questions about the risks of face-scanning tech that could conceivably out people to other businesses.
According to Hayes, none of the Castro bars named responded to requests for comment on their use of the technology.
“People are not expecting that kind of collection and retention when they go to an establishment,” writer and activist Hayley Tsukayama said of the technology in 2024. “It’s a mismatch for consumer expectations, and for that reason, I think it is concerning and there should be more transparency.”
