WASHINGTON – A bipartisan group of senators is pushing for restrictions on the Transportation Security Administration’s use of facial recognition technology, saying they are concerned about travelers’ privacy and civil liberties.
In a letter Thursday, the group of 14 lawmakers asked Senate leaders to use the upcoming reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration as a vehicle to limit the TSA’s use of the technology so Congress can implement some oversight.
“This technology poses significant threats to our privacy and civil liberties, and Congress should prohibit the TSA’s development and deployment of facial recognition tools until rigorous congressional oversight occurs,” the senators wrote.
The effort, led by Senators Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., John Kennedy, R-La., and Roger Marshall, R-Kan., “would disrupt facial recognition technology at security checkpoints, which has been proven to improve security effectiveness, efficiency and passenger experience,” the TSA said in a statement.
The technology is currently in use at 84 airports across the country.
FAA reauthorization is one of the last must-pass bills this Congress. The agency regulates airlines and aircraft manufacturers and manages the country’s airspace.
The TSA, which is part of the Department of Homeland Security, is implementing facial recognition technology at select airports in a pilot project. Travelers place their driver’s license in a slot where the card is read or place their passport photo in a card reader. Then they look at a camera on an iPad-sized screen that captures their image and compares it to their ID. The technology is checking whether travelers at the airport match the ID they present and whether the ID is real. A TSA officer signs the screening.
The agency says the system improves the accuracy of identity verification without slowing passengers at checkpoints.
Passengers can opt out, although TSA administrator David Pekoske said last year that eventually biometrics would be required because it is more effective and efficient. He gave no timeline.
Critics have raised questions about how the data is collected, who has access to it and what happens if there is a hack. Privacy advocates are concerned about possible distortions in the algorithms and say it is not clear enough to passengers that they do not have to undergo facial recognition.
“It is clear that we are at a critical moment,” the senators wrote. “The scope of government use of facial recognition on Americans will expand exponentially under TSA plans, with little to no public discourse or congressional oversight.”
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