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Registered Traveler Program Open For Business

Posted by timothy on from the look-shiny-things dept.

storem writes "Enrollment into TSA's Registered Traveler program started yesterday at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. Frequent flyers are given the opportunity to sign up for a fast-track system using biometrics to identify themselves. It seems this is pretty much the same system tested in Europe in the s-Travel program. There frequent flyers carried their biometric identifiers (fingerprint & iris) with them between airports on a smart card (privacy reasons)."

9 of 262 comments (clear)

  1. Hmm.. by Zardus · · Score: 5, Insightful

    If they carried their information with them on a smartcard, couldn't someone edit the smartcard and fake their info?

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    1. Re:Hmm.. by gregfortune · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Not if the data is altered and encrypted by the airlines each time it is accessed. Good luck ending up with the random set of bits that represents someone with a good flying history...

    2. Re:Hmm.. by WiPEOUT · · Score: 5, Insightful

      This is how I'd envision it working:

      1. your biometric details are stored on the smart card
      2. your flight history is also stored on the smart card
      3. each time you use the card, it reads biometric data on the card, checking it against that read from you by fingerprint/iris sensors
      4. then, it reads all information on the card and MD5/SHA1 hashes it. If it matches the hash stored in the database, and if biometric data checks out, it adds current flight information/status to the card, calculates an updated hash (including the new information), and stores this hash (which is propagated to other airports)

      This way, your biometric data and flight history is never stored by the system, maintaining your privacy, but is available from your card as necessary. Your card cannot be forged as the hash will be different if any bit of data on your card is changed, and will not match that on record.

  2. Rising cost of terrorism by Doc+Ruby · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Now planebombers need to practice their routes more than before, establishing their frequent flyer status. Their biometric IDs will ensure that only the suicidal dupe is making the runs. At least the final flight will be recoupable in earned mileage. Saudi oil billions will buy only so much air travel.

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    1. Re:Rising cost of terrorism by chaffed · · Score: 5, Funny

      But with the extensive use of blackout dates by the airlines. I think we will be safe everyday but the week you are allowed to use your miles.

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      What could possibly go wrong?
  3. How does this help? by tarunthegreat2 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    If your aim is to use the plane as a suicide bomb, will it matter to you if are fingerprinted? The people who were behiond 9/11 weren't known terrorists/criminals. They were quiet people, under the radar....

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    1. Re:How does this help? by tftp · · Score: 5, Insightful

      The airline will then fire half of its clerks.

  4. Re:Frequent flyers- such as international terroris by genixia · · Score: 5, Insightful

    No, the hidden subtext is "We really want to make this compulsory but cannot. So we'll give people the chance to opt in and over time make it really inconvenient for those who choose not to until eventually everyone opts in just to avoid the hassle."

    Been through a fast-lane enabled toll booth recently? The cash lanes are getting fewer and slower all the time.

  5. too much to remember by momogasuki · · Score: 5, Funny

    With my luck, I will show up at the airport and then realize that I left my fingers and iris at home.