Orlando airport to use face scans on all international travelers
- 6 years ago
ORLANDO, FLORIDA — Long, snaking lines may become a thing of the past for passengers travelling through Orlando's main air hub.
The Orlando Sentinel reports that Florida's Orlando International Airport is set to be the first U.S. airport to use facial recognition to process passengers on all inbound and outbound international flights.
The scans will be checked against passenger passport photos and travel information on a Department of Homeland Security database, to verify a travelers identity.
Biometric screening is expected to speed up passenger processing, but concerns have been voiced over privacy and potential information theft.
In response, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection says scans in the database are deleted after 14 days, but could be removed almost immediately in the future. Photos of foreign nationals, however, are also kept in the Automated Biometric Identification System for up to 75 years.
The system currently claims to have a 99% accuracy rate, though officials can manually screen passports and fingerprints if a photo doesn't match or a U.S. citizen decides to opt out.
Once fully implemented, facial scanners will be stationed inside the airport's 30 international departure gates and two CBP checkpoints. The technology is also being used in other U.S. airports, though to a lesser degree.
The Orlando Sentinel reports that Florida's Orlando International Airport is set to be the first U.S. airport to use facial recognition to process passengers on all inbound and outbound international flights.
The scans will be checked against passenger passport photos and travel information on a Department of Homeland Security database, to verify a travelers identity.
Biometric screening is expected to speed up passenger processing, but concerns have been voiced over privacy and potential information theft.
In response, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection says scans in the database are deleted after 14 days, but could be removed almost immediately in the future. Photos of foreign nationals, however, are also kept in the Automated Biometric Identification System for up to 75 years.
The system currently claims to have a 99% accuracy rate, though officials can manually screen passports and fingerprints if a photo doesn't match or a U.S. citizen decides to opt out.
Once fully implemented, facial scanners will be stationed inside the airport's 30 international departure gates and two CBP checkpoints. The technology is also being used in other U.S. airports, though to a lesser degree.