US Expands Airport Biometric Data Collection

athloi sends word of an expansion of the US-VISIT program that now requires two fingerprints from foreign visitors arriving at scores of airports. Beginning later this year the US will be testing a system that collects 10 digital fingerprints, at 10 major points of entry. A US Homeland Security director assured EU officials that the program would operate under strict privacy rules. But he noted that the FBI and CIA will have access to the biometric data, which over time may expand beyond fingerprints.

Comments

Hidden Costs

[RManning]

I work for a very large multi-national company. Not long ago I sat through a talk that was given by the head of our European operations. He said that US airport security is getting so bad that people outside the US are avoiding coming here at all costs! Apparently, we're losing some serious business and tourism money, just because of our bone-headed "security" rules.

Ten fingerprints? I know I wouldn't travel anywhere where one was required!

Anyway, it's just something to think about.

Ten Fingers is a Joke

[asphaltjesus]

A PHB probably said "Three fingers? Why only three fingers? Ten. Ten is better, it's more than three after all."

The system might be able to save 10 prints, but you only need 1 or 2 at most.

A couple of FYI's.
1. It's unlikely they'll store fingerprints. They typically store some kind of proprietary hash value of the fingerprint.
2. It's unlikely they'll make the authentication available to other agencies.
3. Interoperability with other countries is desired, but not likely as each system vendor makes certain that won't actually occur.
4. I will be very interested to find out if they actually get to a point where there are fingerprint readers in airports more than a couple of airports. The scale of the operation overwhelms current technology pretty quickly.

The time to be worried was long, long ago as most of your data has been collected by private agencies and sold to the government for decades now.

Re:"Points of entry"?

[fbjon]

I think you misunderstood:

1. Anus
2. Urethra
3. Right ear
4. Left ear
5. Mouth
6. Right tear canal
7. Left tear canal
8. Right nostril
9. Left nostril
10. Brain access hole

You don't have a brain access hole? Don't worry, trepanation will soon be required for entry at US airports.

Vagina not on the list of major ports of entry? That would be sexual harassment, someone might get upset!

Re:If I lived abroad,

[Fred_A]

I don't live in the USA, and have already come to the conclusion that I'm not going to visit*. My tourist ££s will go to France, Italy, Spain, Thailand etc. instead. The USA needs tourism; tourists don't need the USA, there's a big wide world that's not the USA still to visit. So, to the US government I say this: "it's your loss".

As far as I can tell, more or less 3 out of 4 of my fellow Europeans feel that way. I went to the US before, found that it had some gorgeous scenery, lots of nice people (and quite a few weird ones, but I guess that's part of the charm of the country, sortof), but no longer. Especially while carrying a French passport, I'm not going to subject myself to the antics of room temperature IQ security goons (and that's in Celsius, thank you very much).

I even avoid long flights that have a connection there, simply because a lot of euro travellers I know have been hassled by the security drones to the point of missing their flight.

I'll probably reconsider in a few years when this lunacy is behind us, but for now, South America, the rest of Europe, Asia, the Pacific and Africa offer lots of travel opportunities for me (except that for some reason I still regularly have to point out that I'm not from the US in a lot of places before people get friendly, comes with English still being the world's ligua franca).

Quite sad really.

These are good security measures

[zoftie]

American government have much to worry about, since its total trade deficit and very weak currency, that is artificially propped up. Seeing this from perspective of economy, it may well be that government is preparing for a big one. Once the economy collapses and all the crooks of the white house and other hight governmental circles are exposed, with economy dead - people will take revenge.

Oil will get only more expensive, with weak currency, US might not afford the oil anymore.
Just a thought, It may well be all false.