Homeland Security Still Dreams of Face Recognition at the Border
The Department of Homeland Security is soliciting help from the U.S. private sector to run face recognition scans against drivers and passengers approaching the southern border, according to an agency document reviewed by The Intercept.
Despite the mixed track record and ongoing deficiencies of face recognition technology, DHS is hoping to devise a means of capturing the likenesses of travelers while vehicles are still in motion.
According to a “Request for Information” document distributed by the DHS Science and Technology Directorate, the government is looking for private sector assistance to run face recognition on drivers on passengers en route to the border before they even reach a checkpoint. “[DHS] Tech Scouting is seeking information on technology solutions that can capture biometric data (e.g., facial recognition) of occupants present in vehicles at speed as they approach land border checkpoints,” the document states. “Solutions of interest would have the ability to biometrically scan occupants without requiring them to exit the vehicle and provide checkpoint agents with information to determine if the occupants are a threat and if they may enter the United States.
The document does not elaborate on how such a system would be used to determine whether people in a car constitute a threat to the United States, though prior in-car face recognition pilot programs have checked if drivers had been previously arrested. Vendors that brief DHS on their offerings may be invited to participate in further testing, the document notes.
DHS and Customs and Border Protection did not respond to a request for comment.
