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Kaiser Permanente Hospitals Have Undisclosed Surveillance Equipment in Parking Lots
Kaiser Permanente has been conducting mass surveillance of its members for years and is sharing that information with law enforcement.
Automated License Reader Equipment Found at Several Bay Area Kaiser Locations
Privacy advocates have identified automated license plate readers (ALPRs) in the parking lots at several Bay Area Kaiser facilities. ALPRS scan and record the license plate number of every car they pass and any pedestrian/bicyclist who triggers the motion sensor, and upload the images to cloud databases, where they are stored for months or years at a time. Oakland Privacy researchers have identified cameras at the Kaiser Facilities in San Leandro (11 cameras), Vallejo (at least 5 cameras), Oakland (at least 4 cameras), Union City (6 cameras), Baldwin Park (3 cameras), Point West Sacramento, and Fresno. Pictures of some the plate readers are available at https://oaklandprivacy.org/kaiser-conducting-mass-surveillance-of-its-members/.
Further research has established that several of these medical centers are sharing their image banks with local police departments including the San Leandro Police Department, the Vallejo Police Department and the Burlingame Police Department.
The use of automated license plate readers is legally regulated by the State of California under Senate Bill 34 (2015). Title 1.81.23 of the CA Civil Code Section 1798.90.51 requires all ALPR operators in the state to have a usage and privacy policy available to the public and posted conspicuously on the operator’s website. Oakland Privacy has not been able to locate any license plate reader policy on any of Kaiser Permanente’s websites.
Oakland Privacy advocacy director Tracy Rosenberg comments:
It is disappointing to see, that to the best of our knowledge, Kaiser Permanente is violating long established California privacy laws by using automated license plate reader technology without a publicly available usage and privacy policy and worse, sharing medical geolocation data with law enforcement agencies without reasonable suspicion that a crime has been committed. We all deserve to pursue medical care without the police being notified every time we visit the doctor.
It’s not clear why law enforcement is being granted unfettered access to hospital visitation data at some Kaiser medical facilities.
In 2017, Oakland Privacy discovered a similar piece of equipment in the parking lot for Alameda County’s Highland Hospital in Oakland. After press inquiries, the equipment was removed from Highland.
About Oakland Privacy
Oakland Privacy is a citizens coalition that works regionally to defend the right to privacy and enhance public transparency and oversight over the use of surveillance techniques and equipment. To learn more, visit https://oaklandprivacy.org
Privacy advocates have identified automated license plate readers (ALPRs) in the parking lots at several Bay Area Kaiser facilities. ALPRS scan and record the license plate number of every car they pass and any pedestrian/bicyclist who triggers the motion sensor, and upload the images to cloud databases, where they are stored for months or years at a time. Oakland Privacy researchers have identified cameras at the Kaiser Facilities in San Leandro (11 cameras), Vallejo (at least 5 cameras), Oakland (at least 4 cameras), Union City (6 cameras), Baldwin Park (3 cameras), Point West Sacramento, and Fresno. Pictures of some the plate readers are available at https://oaklandprivacy.org/kaiser-conducting-mass-surveillance-of-its-members/.
Further research has established that several of these medical centers are sharing their image banks with local police departments including the San Leandro Police Department, the Vallejo Police Department and the Burlingame Police Department.
The use of automated license plate readers is legally regulated by the State of California under Senate Bill 34 (2015). Title 1.81.23 of the CA Civil Code Section 1798.90.51 requires all ALPR operators in the state to have a usage and privacy policy available to the public and posted conspicuously on the operator’s website. Oakland Privacy has not been able to locate any license plate reader policy on any of Kaiser Permanente’s websites.
Oakland Privacy advocacy director Tracy Rosenberg comments:
It is disappointing to see, that to the best of our knowledge, Kaiser Permanente is violating long established California privacy laws by using automated license plate reader technology without a publicly available usage and privacy policy and worse, sharing medical geolocation data with law enforcement agencies without reasonable suspicion that a crime has been committed. We all deserve to pursue medical care without the police being notified every time we visit the doctor.
It’s not clear why law enforcement is being granted unfettered access to hospital visitation data at some Kaiser medical facilities.
In 2017, Oakland Privacy discovered a similar piece of equipment in the parking lot for Alameda County’s Highland Hospital in Oakland. After press inquiries, the equipment was removed from Highland.
About Oakland Privacy
Oakland Privacy is a citizens coalition that works regionally to defend the right to privacy and enhance public transparency and oversight over the use of surveillance techniques and equipment. To learn more, visit https://oaklandprivacy.org
For more information:
https://oaklandprivacy.org/kaiser-conducti...
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