Madison Square Garden Built Dossier on Facial Recognition Critics

When hackers published a 45GB data cache stolen from Madison Square Garden in June 2026, buried in the files was a document that shows how surveillance infrastructure can be directed at the people who publicly criticize it.

The file was titled "Facial Recognition Activists.docx" and was stored on an MSG SharePoint instance accessible to multiple employees. According to 404 Media, it compiled information on three named privacy advocates who had publicly opposed MSG's facial recognition program: Evan Greer, director of Fight for the Future; Albert Fox Cahn, founder and executive director of the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project (STOP); and Adam Schwartz, privacy litigation director at the Electronic Frontier Foundation. The document included contact details, social media handles with follower counts, screenshots of Greer's tweets dated December 23, 2022, and quotes from each activist about MSG's program. The file also reportedly misgendered Greer.

MSG has operated facial recognition at its venues since 2018, using it to deny entry to various individuals, including lawyers involved in litigation with the company. The breach surfaced additional context: MSG's security chief John Eversole reportedly visited more than 90 law firm websites and fed photos of approximately 1,200 lawyers into the facial recognition system.

The activists named in the dossier were direct in their responses. Greer said: "The fact that MSG is creating dossiers on activists who say things they don't like shows exactly why private companies should not be allowed to use dangerous surveillance technologies like facial recognition." Schwartz added: "The wake of a data breach would be a good time for Madison Square Garden to stop subjecting its patrons to biometric surveillance."

The document shows what was compiled; it does not show how those profiles were used or whether they influenced any specific decision. The reporting also does not address whether others beyond these three were profiled, or what else the 45GB cache contains. For advocates and legislators seeking documented examples of private-sector facial recognition being turned on its own critics, this disclosure is a concrete case that is difficult to dismiss as hypothetical.