Every Canopy deployment is built so that raw video stays on site. What leaves is a structured event: counts, zone IDs, timestamps, confidence scores.
The seven principles, applied to our stack
Ann Cavoukian's original seven principles are the starting point. We map them explicitly:
- Proactive, not reactive. No facial recognition, no biometric templates, no raw-video retention by default.
- Privacy as the default. The Edge Unit discards frames in under a second. The event stream is structured counts, not footage.
- Privacy embedded into design. The model pipeline, the network stack, the storage layer all assume data minimisation. It is not a config flag.
- Full functionality. Occupancy, dwell, queue, PPE and anomaly insights are all produced from the event stream.
- End-to-end security — full lifecycle protection. Hardware-backed encryption at rest, TLS 1.3 in transit, signed models, audit logs.
- Visibility and transparency. Every event we emit is documented. We will walk your security and legal teams through the architecture on request.
- Respect for user privacy. No individual is tracked across cameras or over time.
Day to day
- No raw video is transmitted to Canopy.
- No facial embeddings are stored, on site or in the cloud.
- No individual is tracked across cameras over time.
- Age/gender bracket estimates are aggregated and never linked to an identity.
- You decide retention. We do not hold data on your behalf beyond what you ask us to.
Custom requirements
We do not ship facial recognition or individual tracking. Where an operational goal depends on identity, we propose an alternative — for example, badge-based access control instead of facial recognition at a gate.
If you are evaluating physical AI vendors, ask three questions: does raw video leave my site; can you identify an individual across cameras; where is the data hosted.
Frequently asked questions
What does "privacy by design" mean in practice?
It means the architecture defaults to data minimisation. Frames are discarded on the edge. No facial embeddings are stored. No individual is tracked across cameras. Australian hosting is the default, not an option.
Do you ever sell customer data?
No. We do not sell, rent, or share event data with any third party. Your events are yours. We do not use your data for general model training without an explicit written agreement.
Can a customer audit your deployment?
Yes. We provide a PIA pack, a retention schedule, and a list of every event type we emit. We will walk your security or legal reviewer through the architecture, including a test unit, on request.
Talk to us about your site
Tell us how many cameras you have and what you want to measure. We respond within one business day.