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Biometrics, Ownership and Privacy?

Posted by Cliff on from the who-owns-the-data dept.

symbolic asks: "I just finished watching a small segment of World Business Review on PBS, where the topic of discussion the use of biometrics by employers to not only provide confirmation of identity, but as something to drive other parts of the operation - like tracking employee time. Briefly mentioned were face and iris scans, but as I was watching a picture of someone's iris, I realized that once an employer has captured a scan of your iris (or any biometric data), who has control over it? Does it become part of the cesspool of information trading that occurs between business and government entities? Will trading of someone's biometric information become as ubiquitous as their address or phone number. Is there any reason we should be concerned about this? I'd like to hear what others think about this." Ask Slashdot has previously approached the Biometrics topic for technical issues, but the privacy issue of such data has yet to be addressed. How do you feel about biometric data (or any data derived from your physical makeup, like your genome) being used as another commodity (like your address) in the corporate data exchange?

5 of 223 comments (clear)

  1. I think it's great! by pizza_milkshake · · Score: 5, Funny

    I think it's great. Instead of sending me spam via mail, fax and email -- now they can engineer ads based on my DNA.

    ad: pizza -- you have an 18% chance of getting colon cancer and only 32.34 years left to live, wouldn't you like to spend some of it drinking a nice, cold, refreshing Pepsi?

    1. Re:I think it's great! by SpinyNorman · · Score: 5, Funny

      I think it's great. Instead of sending me spam via mail, fax and email -- now they can engineer ads based on my DNA.

      Finally they can send the penis enlargement ads to those who need them!

  2. "If"? No...it's "when". by trp0 · · Score: 2, Funny

    With today's current politcal/corporate climate in regard to privacy, it seems fairly obvious that pretty much any information collected on someone (be it biometric or otherwise) will invariably end up being shared in one form or another. As soon as one entity decides a particular pieces of information is handy for keeping track of someone, others will follow; and where others follow, sharing begins. I expect to see an Iris.Net module out soon for Passport and I think my dog's pant pattern has been captured by bugged pellet in his dogfood which authorizes only him to eat that bowl of food.

  3. Copywrite your biometric data by zubernerd · · Score: 2, Funny

    It has the benefit of: If you iris print gets out, sue your employer for copyright infringement. If multiple people try using, call it piracy.

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  4. Re:Already done with fingerprints. by Alsee · · Score: 3, Funny

    I for one feel safer knowing that all the people working at my bank have at least been through a fingerprint check with the FBI. And if a vault is broken into, and they find someones fingerprints, they have a bunch to check.

    Yeah. And I feel safer knowing that all the people working at my local Megamart have at least been through a fingerprint, retinal scan, and DNA check with the FBI. And if they find a jar of spagetti sauce shattered on the floor in aisle 5, and they find someones fingerprints, they have a bunch to check.

    Perhaps you'd like to hear some of my other ideas that will help us all feel safer?

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