Facial-recognition attendance: questions to ask before you buy
Face-based attendance can remove buddy punching and paper registers, but it handles biometric data. These are the questions worth asking any vendor, including us.
Published · 5 min read
Attendance by face recognition is convenient: no cards to lose, no one clocking in for a friend, no registers to collate. Because it processes biometric data, it deserves more scrutiny than a card reader.
Questions about accuracy
- How does it behave with masks, glasses, low light, and people entering in groups?
- What happens when it is unsure: does it fall back to a manual check, or guess?
- Can you see the match score and a snapshot for every record, so disputes can be settled?
Questions about data
- Are face images stored, or only mathematical templates? Where, and encrypted how?
- Who can see or export the data, and is access logged?
- How long is it kept, and what is deleted when a person leaves?
- Can the system run on your own premises rather than only in a vendor cloud?
Questions about consent and law
Biometric data is sensitive personal data in many jurisdictions, including under the UAE personal data protection law. People should be told what is collected and why, and you should take legal advice on your lawful basis, consent and retention before deployment. A good vendor helps you prepare this and does not treat it as someone else's problem.
Questions about the ordinary things
Does it export to your payroll or HR system? What happens when the network drops? Does it work with the cameras you already have? Can it handle your peak entry time without a queue? Pilot it at one gate before committing to the whole site.