You Can Opt Out of an Airport Face Recognition Check
Last week, writer Mackenzie Fegan boarded a JetBlue international flight without even handing over her boarding pass or passport. “I looked into the camera before they let me onto the jet bridge,” she wrote on Twitter . “Has facial recognition replaced boarding passes without my knowledge? Did I agree to this? “
Like many recent travelers, she unknowingly opted for airline facial recognition software – a reality we will all soon get used to in the not too distant future.
And this may interest you; in the end it should speed up the landing process (not sharing documents will probably save you a few seconds and some effort), but there are many reasons why giving up might be the best solution in the long run.
“We have a government that is using this extremely powerful and dangerous biometric facial recognition that could really be a serious control technology,” Jay Stanley, senior political analyst at the American Civil Liberties Union , said by phone. “They use it unnecessarily, like hunting a mosquito with a bazooka.”
Facial recognition matches your identity with past travel documents
How does the airline allow you to board without showing a single physical document? According to the US Customs and Border Protection website , international travelers at participating airports are photographed before boarding (or exiting customs); this information is then compared with images from passports, visas and other travel documents provided by the Department of Homeland Security.
“This is a really time consuming and unusual way to replace the function a person has when they look at your passport photo, look at your face and decide if you are the same person,” Stanley said. “It’s based on the theory that facial recognition software is better than human judgment, which is really incomprehensible.”
If you are a US citizen, your photo will be stored for a maximum of 12 hours. However, if you are traveling from a non-US citizen, the CBP retains your photo for up to two weeks. If you are a non-US citizen arriving at a participating airport, CBP may keep your photo for 75 years, Buzzfeed News writes, which raises a number of privacy and data issues as well as who has access to your information.
Facial recognition has huge social implications
Facial recognition is troubling for many reasons, but Stanley said you shouldn’t be so worried about its ability to “track” your location. “CBP already knows where you are,” he said. “They know you are on this flight and they know who you are based on the biographical information you provided to the airline and your passport.”
However, the fears are much broader, as they concern non-US citizens or people of color, as well as the possibility of false positives. “We fear that … the system could be used to pressure and intimidate non-Americans,” he said. “And another reason people might want to opt out is because facial recognition has serious accuracy issues. People with darker skin have a higher error rate. This is partly due to the fact that AIs learn from database examples, which are dominated by whites. The confidentiality implications are large, but the benefits to America are small. “
Request an alternative verification process
Currently, a pilot facial recognition program operates at a number of major airports such as John F. Kennedy International Airport and Los Angeles International Airport, as well as through major airlines such as JetBlue, Delta and British Airways (in addition to one cruise ship Royal Caribbean).
Despite having a presence at a growing number of airports, you have the option to opt out of facial recognition software by requesting an alternative screening method.
“They don’t necessarily talk about it well,” Stanley said, but you should request this process while standing in line at the gate. According to Newsweek , they will manually check your passport or physical documents just like any other time you board a flight.
“Failure can have an effect; the government is not indifferent to the opinions of the traveling public, ”Stanley said. And if you have concerns, voice them in person or via Twitter so you can make sure the process doesn’t become a requirement, not an option.