Google is in hot water following reports that it is working with an agency that instructed its workers to ask black, homeless people if they were interested in selling facial data in exchange for $5 gift certificates.

Google Wants People's Facial Data

The New York Daily News first reported that the search engine wants people's faces, particularly those with darker skin in a bid to build a massively diverse database it could use for the biometric features on its upcoming Pixel 4 smartphone.

People working for the project, however, reportedly said that Google employed questionable and misleading methods for the project, dispatching teams to target homeless people, along with students on college campuses around the country.

A third party employment firm called Randstad allegedly paid the workers, who claimed they were instructed to go after people of color, conceal the fact that they were recording people's faces, and even lie to maximize their data collection.

Homeless People And University Students

A contractor also said that they were instructed to find homeless people and university students because they are likely the ones who would be attracted to the $5 gift cards.

"We were told not to tell (people) that it was video, even though it would say on the screen that a video was taken," the report quoted a worker.

Google Suspends Field Research That Scans People's Faces

Google said that it was collecting data through field research to build a facial recognition with robust security and performance, but after the backlash, it suspended the controversial project.

According to The New York Times, Google immediately pulled the plug on the program and ordered an investigation after the Daily News' story came out.

"We're taking these claims seriously," a Google spokesperson said in a statement.

Google said that it instructed its contractors to be truthful and transparent with volunteers in the study and that they should obtain consent and ensure the people they interview are aware of why Google was collecting the data.