MSG's Secret Dossier: Tracking the Critics of Facial Recognition

By Joseph Cox | Published June 23, 2026

An investigation by 404 Media has revealed that Madison Square Garden (MSG) compiled a targeted list of individuals who publicly spoke out against the venue's implementation of facial recognition technology. This internal document, titled Facial Recognition Activists.docx, served as a repository for the company to track specific comments and tweets from critics, making this information available to various employees within the organization.

The Nature of the Surveillance

The venue is managed by Jim Dolan, a figure known for being ~~friendly~~ pernicious toward those he considers his adversaries. The discovery of this dossier suggests that MSG is not merely using biometric tools for security, but is actively monitoring the people who challenge the ethics of those very tools.

Data Summary

Entity	Action	Target	Source of Leak
Madison Square Garden	Compiled Dossier	Privacy Activists	45GB Data Breach
Jim Dolan	Management	Perceived Enemies	Hacker Leak

How the Information Surfaced

The document was discovered within a massive cache of stolen data. The total volume of the breach can be represented as: $\text{Total Leak Size} = 45 \text{ GB} \approx 4.8 \times 10^{10} \text{ bytes}$

The flow of information occurred as follows:

Reaction from the Targeted

Among those listed in the dossier was Adam Schwartz, the director of privacy litigation at the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). Speaking to 404 Media, Schwartz noted:

“The wake of a data breach would be a good time for Madison Square Garden to stop subjecting its patrons to biometric surveillance.”

Internal Process Simulation

Based on the report, the internal "workflow" for creating the dossier likely looked like this:

def track_activist(user_handle):
    tweets = fetch_tweets(user_handle, keyword="MSG Facial Recognition")
    comments = fetch_comments(user_handle)
    save_to_docx("Facial Recognition Activists.docx", tweets, comments)
    return "Target Logged"

MSG's "To-Do" List for the Dossier:

Identify public critics of biometric tech.
Archive critical tweets.
Log specific comments.
Share document internally.

Related Surveillance & Privacy News

Joseph Cox

While the MSG story highlights corporate surveillance, other recent reports indicate a broader trend of privacy erosion:

FCC vs. Anonymity: The FCC is attempting to eliminate "burner phones" by requiring telecom companies to collect government IDs and physical addresses from all customers.
- Impact: This specifically threatens domestic abuse survivors and privacy advocates.
SignalTrace Expansion: A new product is linking Bluetooth data (from AirPods, smartwatches, and phones) to license plate readers.
- Function: It correlates devices that travel together to identify the people inside a vehicle.
FBI's National Ambitions: The FBI is seeking nationwide access to license plate reader data, likely through vendors like Motorola or Flock.

Other Notable Headlines

Emanuel Maiberg

Wikipedia: Co-founder Larry Sanger has been banned from the platform for "canvassing" to create a conservative pressure group.
Censorship: Public records indicate many libraries are removing Pride displays to avoid controversy.
AI & Energy: Community leaders in Michigan are fighting a proposed nuclear-powered AI data center, vowing to resist "to their very last breath."