Build a Rocket Boy (BARB), the studio behind notorious flop MindsEye, is being sued by a group of unionized employees over the alleged installation of surveillance software without their knowledge or consent.
As reported by Game Developer, the IWGB Game Workers Union is handling the legal proceedings on the employees' behalf. The union says BARB was not transparent about data it was collecting from Teramind, a piece of software geared towards surveillance and supposedly installed on employees' computers.
While Teramind was apparently removed from employee hardware following the submission of a collective grievance, BARB leadership is now being accused of not disclosing what data was collected by Teramind while it was installed, as well as the studio's initial motivation for the installation.
According to the IWGB, the use of Teramind by Build a Rocket Boy "violates both data protection laws and the workforce's basic dignity" and involved "recording individuals in their homes and without their consent", presumably because employees were working from home.
The union goes on to say that an "internal meeting leaked to the press" confirms that Build a Rocket Boy heads Leslie Benzies and Mark Gerhard installed Teramind without employees' knowledge.
This is the latest in a...
