The next time you're in line for airport security, instead of having a Transportation Security Administration agent check your ID, cameras and screens use biometric facial recognition to match your face to a photo ID. You may need to verify your identity and verify your ID. It's not fake.
TSA has installed the system at more than 200 U.S. airports to improve identity verification accuracy and keep lines running.
Spokeo used information from Customs and Border Protection to find out how many airports in each state are using facial recognition software for security screening, and to examine the pros and cons of such programs.
The TSA began piloting the system at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Virginia in 2020, but this is not the first time it has used biometrics. Since the mid-2000s, foreign nationals entering the United States have been required to submit biometric data at customs to verify their identity.
The technology behind facial recognition is even older. Computer scientist Woodrow Wilson Bledsoe pioneered facial recognition technology in the 1960s when he developed a system that used distances between facial coordinates to identify faces in photo databases.
Machine learning has helped expand the technology and its capabilities by mining many databases to improve prediction accuracy.
The United States is not alone in using facial recognition technology. Airports around the world, including Canada, Ireland, Bermuda, the Bahamas and the United Arab Emirates, also use the software to aid in the inspection process. In Australia, travelers using electronic travel authorization submit their passport information electronically to authorities by swiping a passport chip on their smartphone. According to the Guardian, passport photos will be automatically passed on to authorities, eliminating the need to remove passports at customs.
Read the domestic version of this story here.
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Facial recognition programs continue to expand
TSA's initial deployment covered 16 airports of various sizes across the country, including Baltimore. Boston; Dallas; Detroit; Orlando, Florida. Phoenix; Salt Lake City; San Jose, California. and Gulfport Biloxi, Mississippi. States with busy international airports continue to add the technology as TSA pilots expand.
The system is intended to speed up security lines and limit physical contact with TSA agents, but passenger reactions have been mixed. While some travelers who flew through Las Vegas' Harry Reid International Airport in February 2020 praised the convenience, others expressed concerns about privacy and the use of their facial images.
Airports using this technology in Florida include:
Witham Field Airport
(Airport code: SUA, located in Stuart)
Treasure Coast International Airport (formerly St. Lucie)
(Airport code: FPR, located in Fort Pierce)
Florida Keys Marathon Airport
(Airport code: MTH, located in Marathon)
tampa international airport
(Airport code: TPA, located in Tampa)
St. Petersburg Clearwater International Airport
(Airport code: PIE, located in St. Petersburg)
Sarasota Bradenton International Airport
(Airport code: SRQ, located in Sarasota)
palm beach international airport
(Airport code: PBI, located in West Palm Beach)
Orlando Sanford International Airport
(Airport code: SFB, located in Sanford)
Orlando Melbourne International Airport
(Airport code: MLB, located in Melbourne)
orlando international airport
(Airport code: MCO, located in Orlando)
Orlando Executive Airport
(Airport code: ORL, located in Orlando)
Opa Locka airport
(Airport code: OPF, located in Miami)
Northeast Florida Regional Airport (St. Augustine)
(Airport code: UST, located in St. Augustine)
Naples Municipal Airport
(Airport code: APF, located in Naples)
Miami Seaplane Base Airport
(Airport code: MPB, located in Miami)
miami international airport
(Airport code: MIA, located in Miami)
Leesburg International Airport
(Airport code: LEE, located in Leesburg)
Lakeland Linder Regional Airport
(Airport code: LAL, located in Lakeland)
Key West International Airport
(Airport code: EYW, located in Key West)
Kendall Tamiami Executive Airport
(Airport code: TMB, located in Miami)
jacksonville international airport
(Airport code: JAX, located in Jacksonville)
Fort Myers Southwest Florida International Airport
(Airport code: RSW, located in Fort Myers)
Fort Lauderdale International Airport
(Airport code: FLL, located in Fort Lauderdale)
Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport
(Airport code: FXE, located in Fort Lauderdale)
Daytona Beach International Airport
(Airport code: DAB, located in Daytona Beach)
Boca Raton airport
(Airport code: BCT, located in Boca Raton)
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Thomas Koex/AFP //Getty Images
The future of facial recognition
Privacy issues are a concern for many when it comes to facial recognition technology, especially when passengers' biometrics are used for profiling and surveillance without their knowledge.
Passengers can opt out of the system and undergo manual screening. But it could run into some problems, like when Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley refused to use screening technology at Reagan National Stadium in 2023. Although the agent warned that the manual process would cause delays (it didn't), that warning could force others to use the system. TSA says it does not store images or use the technology to profile or monitor passengers. Still, CBS News reports that some information will be kept for up to two years to help evaluate the technology.
Critics of facial recognition biometrics also cite racial bias. According to Harvard University, studies have shown that facial recognition algorithms are more prone to errors when trying to identify black people, especially dark-skinned women, and that they are more prone to errors than lighter-skinned men. They are 34% more likely to be correctly identified.
TSA says its facial biometric system has a 99% success rate, with a false negative rate of less than 3%. Still, 2.9 million passengers fly in the U.S. every day, and full implementation could cause headaches for tens of thousands of travelers.
Meanwhile, the TSA will continue to test, evaluate and deploy facial recognition technology, and also plans to test iris scans as a means of verifying identity.
This article features data reporting by Elena Cox and is written by Jill Jaracz and is part of a series leveraging data automation across 47 states.
This story originally appeared on Spokeo and was produced and distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.
