ASOCIACION DE CONSUMIDORES Y USUARIOS EN ACCION - FACUA – €3,150,000 Fine (Spain, 2021)

€3,150,000Agencia Española de Protección de Datos23 July 2021Spain
final
ePrivacy
Fine

Spain fined Mercadona EUR 3,150,000 for using facial recognition in its supermarkets without proper consent. The system scanned faces to prevent entry of banned individuals but was stopped by a court order. This case shows that using biometric data without clear legal grounds can lead to hefty fines.

What happened

Mercadona used facial recognition in supermarkets without proper consent or legal basis.

Who was affected

Supermarket visitors whose faces were scanned by Mercadona's system.

What the authority found

The Spanish authority ruled that Mercadona's use of facial recognition violated GDPR due to lack of consent and improper processing of biometric data.

Why this matters

This case warns businesses about the risks of using biometric data without clear legal justification. It underscores the need for transparency and consent when deploying advanced surveillance technologies.

GDPR Articles Cited

AI-verified

Art. 6 GDPR
Art. 9 GDPR
Art. 12 GDPR
Art. 13 GDPR
Art. 35 GDPR
Art. 5(1)(c) GDPR
Art. 25(1) GDPR
Art. 57(1) GDPR
Art. 83(4)(a) GDPR
Art. 83(5)(a) GDPR
Art. 83(5)(b) GDPR
View original scraped data
Art. 5(1)(c) GDPR
Art. 6 GDPR
Art. 9 GDPR
Art. 12 GDPR
Art. 13 GDPR
Art. 25(1) GDPR
Art. 35 GDPR
Art. 57(1) GDPR
Art. 83(4)(a) GDPR
Art. 83(5)(a) GDPR
Art. 83(5)(b) GDPR

Original data from scraper before AI verification against source document.

National Law Articles

AI-identified

LOPDGDD

Entities Involved

ASOCIACION DE CONSUMIDORES Y USUARIOS EN ACCION - FACUA
Mercadona, S.A.
Source verified 5 March 2026
national law identified
scope corrected
Full Legal Summary
Detailed

The case involved the use of facial recognition technology by Mercadona to prevent access to individuals with entry bans, not related to cookies or consent mechanisms.

Violations (1)

Cookies Placed Before Consent
critical

Non-essential cookies (tracking, advertising) are placed on the user's device before obtaining valid consent.

Art. 6(1) GDPR

Related Enforcement Actions (0)

No other enforcement actions found for ASOCIACION DE CONSUMIDORES Y USUARIOS EN ACCION - FACUA in ES

This is the only recorded action for this entity in this jurisdiction.

Details

Fine Date

23 July 2021

Authority

Agencia Española de Protección de Datos

Fine Amount

€3,150,000

GDPRhub ID

gdprhub-3677

About this data

Data: GDPRhub (noyb.eu)
Licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
AI-verified and classified

Cite as: Cookie Fines. ASOCIACION DE CONSUMIDORES Y USUARIOS EN ACCION - FACUA - Spain (2021). Retrieved from cookiefines.eu

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