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Senators say TSA's facial recognition program is out of control

gizmodo.com

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Re: Senators say TSA's facial recognition program is out of control

#21

Post by grecy »

snakeyjake wrote: post #10
blackeyeblitzar wrote: post #2

I was shocked to see this program arrive in my local airport. I opt out every time, but the horrifying thing is that almost everyone simply complies with whatever is asked of them. The TSA agents use phrasing that make it seem like you are supposed to go through the facial recognition process and don’t have a choice. Yes, there are tiny signs scattered around that say you can opt out. But when the officer says “step…

Generally speaking you present ID to pass through security. The facial recognition is based on the biometric data collected when you got your ID, the ID you presented to pass through security. The ID with your name, address, date of birth, and uniquely identifying number on it. The ID which is associated with your boarding pass. The ID they scan (or they scan the boarding pass which is associated with your ID) prior…

> the biometric data collected when you got your ID

When I got my license, which I can use to board a flight in my country I did not give fingerprints or an eye scan. They have my photo, DOB, name - not more.

Re: Senators say TSA's facial recognition program is out of control

#22

Post by ipython »

goalieca wrote: post #18
snakeyjake wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Generally speaking you present ID to pass through security. The facial recognition is based on the biometric data collected when you got your ID, the ID you presented to pass through security. The ID with your name, address, date of birth, and uniquely identifying number on it. The ID which is associated with your boarding pass. The ID they scan (or they scan the boarding pass which is associated with your ID) prior…

Maybe I’m old school but I despise the idea of the government tracking me as I travel. Time and time again they are caught violating privacy laws and abusing power.

Given that you already need government issued ID that matches the name printed on your ticket to travel on an airplane, wouldn’t the government already have the ability to track you, regardless of facial recognition?

Re: Senators say TSA's facial recognition program is out of control

#24

Post by goodluckchuck »

Zanni wrote: post #9

Serious question: why is this bad? Is it just the 3% false negative rate? I don't see the negative privacy implications of face recognition when the alternative is to present your face (via photo ID) anyway.

The leviathan is often arbitrary and capricious.

Re: Senators say TSA's facial recognition program is out of control

#25

Post by toomuchtodo »

ipython wrote: post #22
goalieca wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe I’m old school but I despise the idea of the government tracking me as I travel. Time and time again they are caught violating privacy laws and abusing power.

Given that you already need government issued ID that matches the name printed on your ticket to travel on an airplane, wouldn’t the government already have the ability to track you, regardless of facial recognition?

Indeed, the government doesn't even need the ID, they ingest a data feed of Passenger Name Records (PNRs) from all airlines. This is why when TSA performs the automated identity proofing, comparing a photo of you to your ID, they don't require that you provide a boarding pass.

Comparing an ephemeral photo taken of you to your government credential at the TSA checkpoint is a temporary formality. At some point, the government credential presentation will be unnecessary.

https://www.cbp.gov/travel/clearing-cbp/passenger-name-recor... (Control-F "What information is collected?")

Re: Senators say TSA's facial recognition program is out of control

#26

Post by beej71 »

I also can't see the tracking difference between a human verifying your identity and entering that into a database and a computer verifying your identity and entering that into a database.

But it's still a valid concern as to whether or not this new system is at least as secure and privacy-respecting as the old one.

Re: Senators say TSA's facial recognition program is out of control

#28

Post by bjtitus »

MarkMarine wrote: post #4

For this to work they must have already done facial recognition on everyone’s ID photos, so I fail to see what opting out even does for me from a privacy perspective. Seems like shutting the barn door after the horse is already out.

Yeah, it seems pretty useless. Nothing stops them from simply doing this on publicly available data online as well.

We’ve known for over a decade that DHS, FBI, CBP, and local police buy location data.

https://www.propublica.org/article/no-warrant-no-problem-how...

Re: Senators say TSA's facial recognition program is out of control

#29

Post by bediger4000 »

quotemstr wrote: post #14

I'll take facial recognition over long TSA lines any day. I can't wait until we have full-throughput non-blocking walk-through security.

That will never happen. The long lines and inconveniences are the point, not a side effect.

How many shoe bombers does the TSA catch in a day? 0. In a month? 0. Since the only shoe bomber? 0. We still take off our shoes. Same with underwear bombs. 0. We still partially undress and do the nude-a-tron.

The point is, we could already ditch the lines, we don't want to.

Re: Senators say TSA's facial recognition program is out of control

#30

Post by mingus88 »

MarkMarine wrote: post #4

For this to work they must have already done facial recognition on everyone’s ID photos, so I fail to see what opting out even does for me from a privacy perspective. Seems like shutting the barn door after the horse is already out.

Indeed, not to mention the availability of public social media photos. To think that every intelligence agency on earth hasn’t already trained FR across their databases of IDs and material voluntarily uploaded by themselves and their family/friends…

One reason I left Facebook early on was that I didn’t like getting tagged in photos the next morning after everyone would get home from parties. Too bad for me, as long as you have a friend who don’t value your privacy, there is nothing you can do about it.

Add to this any public event, where they are well within their rights to take your picture and match it against known threat actors and the only way to not play this game is to be a hermit

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