- The TSA may expand its facial recognition identification system nationwide next year, WaPo reported.
- Facial recognition is currently used in 16 domestic airports for identifying passengers.
- The TSA has used various biometric technologies since the 9/11 terror attacks.
The TSA may expand the pilot program of its facial recognition identification system — currently being used in 16 domestic airports across the United States — to include airports nationwide as early as next year.
The Washington Post reported the TSA's use of the controversial technology, which relies on "live photos" cross-referenced to your driver's license photo, was originally rolled out at DC's Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport due to coronavirus concerns and has since grown to include major airports such as Los Angeles International Airport, Orlando International Airport, and Dallas-Forth Worth Airport.
The tech is currently opt-in, with passengers stepping up to a kiosk, inserting their ID, and having their faces scanned. Currently, passengers can choose a standard TSA screening process instead.
"What we often see with these biometric programs is they are only optional in the introductory phases — and over time we see them becoming standardized and nationalized and eventually compulsory," Albert Fox Cahn, the founder of the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, or STOP, told The Post. "There is no place more coercive to ask people for their consent than an airport."
In a statement emailed to Insider, a spokesperson for the TSA said the expansion of the program is dependent on Department of Homeland Security's approval to deploy the technology and purchase of enough units for additional airports.
"If all goes as planned, TSA anticipates going into production later this year with deployments at airport checkpoints beginning sometime just prior to 2024," the TSA statement read. "Passenger participation remains voluntary and TSA continues to evaluate and improve the technology's performance."
In addition to the TSA, facial recognition technology is currently utilized by other agencies under the Department of Homeland Security, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which uses the tech to track migrants. Law enforcement agencies have also adopted the tech, though its use has been heavily criticized due to widespread reports of racial bias.
Its use by law enforcement is even illegal in some cities, including San Francisco as, in some cases, racially-biased facial recognition scans have led to false arrests and even jail time for a Black man who was misidentified.
TSA's Jason Lim, who helps run the program, called Credential Authentication Technology with Camera (CAT-2), told The Washington Post passengers should not worry about being misidentified — but critics aren't eager to take his word for it.
"I am worried that the TSA will give a green light to technology that is more likely to falsely accuse Black and Brown and nonbinary travelers and other groups that have historically faced more facial recognition errors," Cahn told The Post, adding that he doesn't "trust the TSA to evaluate the efficacy of its own facial recognition systems."
December 5, 2022: This story has been updated to include a response from the TSA.