“New York City Council’s new bill banning biometric data collection in residential buildings is a strong step forward to give tenants and their guests more protections from the encroachment of their landlords and from modern surveillance technologies.”

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“The landlord is trying to install a heat-mapping facial recognition hardware at the entrance of our building,” one tenant of the Atlantic Plaza Towers said to their fellow community members in Brooklyn.

That was in 2018, before they realized that it was going to take months to force the landlord to withdraw the application to install the hardware. Back then, heat-mapping facial recognition technology was still relatively new, and there had been zero legislation regulating the use of the technology.

After years of community-level organizing, the New York City Council finally introduced a bill (Intro. 1024-2023) in April of this year to limit biometric data collection in residential buildings around the city, which includes iris scans, fingerprints, voiceprints, palm prints, facial structure, movement patterns, and other sensitive information. 

The introduction of this bill is the culmination of years of efforts by New Yorkers like those living in the Atlantic Plaza Towers to fight against new forms of digital surveillance by landlords. In 2018, community members were unfamiliar with heat-mapping facial recognition technology but immediately voiced concerns. This technology had never been used in residential sectors. It had not been tested and did not have proper validation.

After the hardware scanned your face, where was the biometric data being stored? Who had the power to access the data? Could the data be subpoenaed by the police department as a new form of draconian police surveillance? How were the residents supposed to just brush it off, if the NYPD could use the data to convict someone? In a community composed of majority Black and brown residents, it was impossible to ignore the potential deleterious effects that this new technology could bring.

Biometric data was only one of the many forms of data that landlords were collecting on their tenants back then, and are still collecting today. Even key fobs or radio-frequency identification (RFID) cards can contain personal information such as the tenant’s name, age, and address. In some buildings, smart access systems use GPS technology to track one’s location, even when one is outside the building. Landlords can then use all of the data they have collected to harass or even evict a tenant.

Considering the implicit biases in data collection algorithms and in society in general, it comes as no surprise that Black and brown people are disproportionately impacted by such harassment. In response to this form of data collection, the City Council introduced the “KEYS Act” (Int 0695-2022) last year, which gives tenants the right to a physical key so that they can opt out of potential data collection by their landlords.

Due to the lack of proper local and federal legislation, the space of biometric data collection is like the wild west. The concerns of Atlantic Plaza Towers residents were mired in the swamp of bureaucracy that is the state’s Homes and Community Renewal (HCR) agency. Meanwhile, tenants had no causes of action to bring their landlord to court. A shame-campaign was the their only way of seeking redress. 

After being bombarded with press coverage of community members voicing their concerns for months, the landlord, Nelson Management Group, finally caved in and withdrew their application to install the much-hated technology in 2019.

Ever since then, the local legislative landscape has improved significantly to protect tenant rights with the passage of the Tenant Data Privacy Act (“TDPA”) in 2021, where data collection in residential buildings is largely regulated and limited.

When we are addressing community issues with new technologies, we tend to be drawn to the glitz and glamor of the technology itself, without realizing that surveillance technologies have real-life impacts on community members. Meanwhile, there have always been affordable alternatives that amplify community stakeholder-ship. Surveillance should never be the preferred way of addressing issues and it will only create more problems that our city does not have the capability of addressing.

New York City Council’s new bill banning biometric data collection in residential buildings is a strong step forward to give tenants and their guests more protections from the encroachment of their landlords and from modern surveillance technologies. At the same time, with legislative development on the local level, New York City is able to inspire more cities and states to join the effort of protecting their communities and may eventually lead to the passage of statutes on the federal level as well. 

We urge the City Council to pass Int 1024-2023 and to ban biometric data collection in residential buildings once and for all. 

Zuliang “Patrick” Li is a legal intern at S.T.O.P. and a rising second-year law student at NYU Law interested in the intersection between technology and social issues.

Fabian Rogers (he/him/his) is a constituent advocate for NYS Senator Jabari Brisport, a member of HOPE (Housing Organizers for People Empowerment), and BGJ (Brownsville Green Justice) in Brooklyn, NY. He has been on the frontlines with his neighbors resisting the use of surveillance technology, housing, and environmental injustice in his community.

The post Opinion: Biometric Surveillance Has No Place in New Yorkers’ Homes appeared first on City Limits.

When veteran offensive lineman Dalton Risner signed with the Vikings last month, it seemed like only a matter of time before he was in the starting lineup, whether that be in place of left guard Ezra Cleveland or right guard Ed Ingram.

Instead, the 28-year-old Risner has been biding his time on the sidelines. After starting 62 games with the Denver Broncos earlier in his career, Risner has lived the life of a backup for the first time in his career.

How has he handled that change?

“Every time I have he desire to get onto the field, I ask myself, ‘What can I control?’ ” Risner said. “Then I work my (expletive) off to make sure I’m ready when I’m called upon.”

That time finally came for Risner last weekend when Cleveland suffered a foot injury with the Vikings leading the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field. Risner raced into the huddle and played 10 snaps on offense in relief.

“I was able to go out there and execute,” Risner said. “That’s what I want to be able to do.”

His performance garnered praise from head coach Kevin O’Connell.

“You can tell the game makes sense to him when he’s in there no matter the post snap movement or the look of the defense,” O’Connell said. “He can adapt and get the job done regardless of what the circumstances were going in the game, like that against a team that was moving a lot up front.”

It was a similar assessment from offensive coordinator Wes Phillips.

“He did everything we asked him to do,” Phillips said. He played very hard and was sprinting down the field when a run got down there, trying to pick guys off before the play was dead. He worked his technique and fundamentals. He’s got a good calming presence there.”

That’s something the Vikings could be relying when they host the San Francisco 49ers on Monday Night Football. Though there hasn’t been any official word on Cleveland’s availability for the primetime game, he hasn’t practiced this week, meaning Risner could get the nod.

It would be a much different perspective for Risner after spending the past month watching from the sidelines while also making sure he was ready at a moment’s notice.

“A guy can go down and there’s maybe a 30-second window to get in the game,” Risner said. “You’ve got to stay prepared. You’ve got to stay locked in. You’ve got to know what all of the guys are doing out there.”

All the while, Risner knew there was a good chance he still might not get in the game. That’s the life of a backup in the NFL.

“You never know, and that’s the hardest part,” Risner said. “It takes a lot of discipline.”

Not once did Risner think about petitioning for more playing time. He prides himself on being a good teammate and making everybody around him better.

“I’m going to show up, put my head down, and go to work,” Risner said. “I want to earn the respect of this locker room, and I want to do that without saying a word.”

He’s done that with his preparation in practices. Now he needs to continue to do that with his play in games.

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Rajon Rondo got an unusually timed phone call recently. It was around 3 a.m. His former teammate Paul Pierce was on the other line.

“He was like, ‘They want us back.’ I’m like, ‘Hello?’” Rondo said.

Pierce was talking about the Celtics, and specifically coach Joe Mazzulla, who sent out an email to all the franchise’s alumni with an open invitation to practice. Pierce and several others have already returned. Rondo got the email, and with a little nudging from Pierce, he took up the opportunity with a surprise visit to Friday’s practice at the Auerbach Center.

“You do that in a lot of college programs where alumni come back,” Rondo said. “As a pro, you don’t do it as much because guys get traded to so many different teams and it’s the NBA. So to get that email was very welcoming and humbling at the same time.”

Rondo, who played the first nine seasons of his career with the Celtics before being traded in 2015, was excited to check out the Auerbach Center for the first time. He used Friday as an opportunity to talk basketball, catch up with old friends and briefly stop by with the media to share his thoughts on these Celtics.

Rondo, like many, is very impressed with the championship favorites and was a big fan of their trade for Jrue Holiday, who he played with during his one season with the New Orleans Pelicans.

“I love the Jrue Holiday pickup,” Rondo said. “He’s one of my favorite teammates I’ve ever played with all-time and I’m excited for you guys to see what he can bring night in, night out. …

“Just his mentality, his mindset, his professional approach to the game, and just what he brings out there on the court. He does a lot of intangibles, he’s a very unselfish guy, and he’s fun to be around. But he’s a winner. He’s a competitor.”

Rondo had not been around this Celtics team long enough to compare them to the 2008 championship team, but there is another former teammate of his who’s now on the coaching staff in Sam Cassell who he thinks will be a huge benefit as they chase a title this season.

“A lot. He helped me the year we won the championship in 2008,” Rondo said. “He was a very vocal veteran for me on the team, a guy that I always still call to this day for advice. So the guys having him around is going to be big for them.”

The 37-year-old Rondo has not played in an NBA game since 2022 when he was with the Cavaliers, and while he did not admit if he was officially retired, he’s clearly transitioning into the next chapter of his life. Rondo said he’s back in school at the University of Kentucky – where he played two seasons – to pursue a degree in communications.

Rondo also said coaching is in his future, and used Friday’s visit as a chance to pick the brains of Mazzulla and the rest of his staff.

“I love teaching the game,” Rondo said. “Right now I have a young AAU program with my son’s team. I coach at that level and want to dedicate my time with him and try to get him off to the right start. My daughter is in volleyball. I’m not an expert coach in that but I do study that game as well and try to put her in the right positions to get a scholarship. So, coaching is in the future. I wanted to come here this week and learn from Joe and pick up as much knowledge as I can from him and the rest of the staff and just kind of learn.”