The Disney Case: What’s Actually Happening

I’ve been following a developing legal situation that’s caught my attention—and honestly, it should catch yours too. Disney is facing a class action lawsuit centered on their use of facial recognition technology throughout their theme parks. The core complaint? Visitors aren’t getting clear enough notice that their faces are being scanned and processed.

Now, on the surface, this might seem disconnected from what we do here—optimizing Photoshop workflows and discussing presets. But stick with me, because there’s a meaningful connection.

Why This Matters Beyond the Headlines

What fascinates me about this case is the automation angle. Disney’s deployment of facial recognition represents exactly what we celebrate in the preset and workflow space: using technology to automatically identify, categorize, and process massive amounts of visual data without manual intervention.

The lawsuit isn’t really about the technology being bad—it’s about consent and transparency. Visitors didn’t knowingly agree to have their biometric data collected and processed. They just showed up for a fun day at the park.

The Preset Parallel

Here’s where I get thoughtful: we build Photoshop actions and presets specifically to automate image processing at scale. A single click can apply complex edits to hundreds of photos. That power is incredible for efficiency. But it also raises legitimate questions about what we’re automating and whether people understand what’s happening to their images.

Are you using presets to batch-process client photos? Great—but did your clients explicitly consent to that workflow? Did you explain which automated adjustments were being applied? These feel like small details, but they’re increasingly important.

Moving Forward

I’m not suggesting we need to overthink every action we create or action set we use. But the Disney case is a useful reminder that automation—whether it’s identifying faces or automatically adjusting skin tones—comes with responsibility.

The photographers and designers doing their best work understand this. They’re transparent about their tools, honest about their workflows, and intentional about automation. They ask permission before batching. They explain their presets. They respect the process.

Technology isn’t going anywhere. Facial recognition, AI-powered adjustments, and automated workflows will only become more sophisticated. The question is whether we’re using these tools thoughtfully or just because we can.

That’s the real story worth paying attention to.