Migrants lacking passports must now submit to facial recognition to board flights in US

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: AP

Updated 7:54 PM EDT, March 14, 2024


McALLEN, Texas (AP) — The U.S. government has started requiring migrants without passports to submit to facial recognition technology to take domestic flights under a change that prompted confusion this week among immigrants and advocacy groups in Texas.

It is not clear exactly when the change took effect, but several migrants with flights out of South Texas on Tuesday told advocacy groups that they thought they were being turned away. The migrants included people who had used the government’s online appointment system to pursue their immigration cases. Advocates were also concerned about migrants who had crossed the U.S.-Mexico border illegally before being processed by Border Patrol agents and released to pursue their immigration cases.

The Transportation Security Administration told The Associated Press on Thursday that migrants without proper photo identification who want to board flights must submit to facial recognition technology to verify their identity using Department of Homeland Security records.

“If TSA cannot match their identity to DHS records, they will also be denied entry into the secure areas of the airport and will be denied boarding,” the agency said.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/immigration-airport-security-facial-recognition-37b8f40ad768706cd335d9254e6a07e4

[SARose]

1. Don't Take It at Face Value: Why TSA's Implementation of Facial Recognition is More Dangerous Than You Think

June 30, 2023 | Jeramie D. Scott, Director of EPIC's Project on Surveillance Oversight

Snip

Another risk that is set in motion by TSA’s use of face verification is the very real possibility that our face eventually becomes our default ID and creates a de facto national ID controlled by the government. TSA subjecting millions of travelers to face verification will act as an endorsement of face verification moving forward, regardless if the agency intends it that way or not. Consequently, it will accelerate the use of our faces as our IDs. No longer will we control our identification as that control will be ceded to the government, which will have the ability to easily identify us without our consent and even without our knowledge. And using our faces as our ID means the infrastructure for facial recognition will become ubiquitous and centralized and the temptation to expand the use of such an infrastructure will likely be too great to resist, resulting in mission creep. A national ID based on face verification will be disastrous for our privacy, civil liberties, and civil rights. It would destroy anonymity and put the control of identification in the hands of the government and further exacerbate the imbalance of power between the government and the people.

Snip

https://epic.org/dont-take-it-at-face-value-why-tsas-implementation-of-facial-recognition-is-more-dangerous-than-you-think/

Interesting read. Wonder who is behind this software/hardware? Hmmm more research needed.

Thanks, Bum. Very interesting.

[limbicnuminousity]

7. The same fools who ignored or minimized

the risks associated with Google and Facebook hoovering up personal info will ignore and minimize this.

Do we really want facial recognition used if it identifies patients entering abortion clinics? Or patients entering a gender-affirming care facility? The potential for misuse is absurd.

[SARose]

9. Exactly

👏

[Eugene]

2. Facial recognition is notoriously bad with dark-skinned persons.

Delta's facial recognition system couldn't recognize me when I boarded my flight.
There needs to be a ready backup.

[maxsolomon]

3. Delta has a facial recognition system?

I've never seen that used - where does it happen in the process? I don't fly Delta much now - mostly Alaskan.

[Eugene]

6. It happened at the gate in Atlanta as boarding passes were scanned.

It was supposedly meant to substitute for the final passport check on an international flight.

[maxsolomon]

8. Interesting.

Haven't been on International Flights recently.

[EX500rider]

4. As ID is required to board a commercial airline this seems better then a strict No

It is in the public interest for safety to know who the passengers are or known terrorists could board as migrants also

[Prairie Gates]

5. What an imposition!