A Whopper for a Whopper – Identity News Digest

Welcome to FindBiometrics’ digest of identity industry news. Here’s what you need to know about the world of digital identity and biometrics today:

UK Legislation Opens Door to Driver’s License Database for Facial Recognition Searches: Report

New legislation will pave the way for police in the United Kingdom to perform facial recognition searches against the country’s database of 50 million driver’s license holders, reports The Guardian. The legislation says that the Home Secretary will need to consult with police bodies in order to establish “driver information regulations” for such searches. The move worries privacy and civil rights advocates. In response, a Home Office spokesperson said that this particular clause in the criminal justice bill “does note allow for automatic access” to the driver’s license records, adding, “Any further developments would be subject to further engagement as the public would expect.”

House Committee Grills Shein on Data Collection, Slave Labor

The heads of the US House’s Committee on Energy and Commerce have sent a letter to Shein, the Chinese fast fashion retailer, asking whether it collects the biometric, genetic, and health data of its customers. The letter also asked whether Shein collects information about customers’ religious and political beliefs, and whether it can state unequivocally that forced labor is not used in the production of its products. The company is under scrutiny particularly for suspected connections to the Chinese Communist Party, ahead of a planned US IPO.

Libyan Government Aims for e-Passport Upgrade

The Libyan government will transition to new, biometric e-passports and e-ID cards, according to officials. Prime Minister Abd Alhamid Aldabaiba has issued a directive to that effect, stressing the need for machine readable identity documents that can be used to eliminate manual data entry tasks at the country’s border ports. As the Libya Herald reports, an earlier plan to implement biometric passports, first unveiled in early 2013, failed to deliver. The country has struggled with civil unrest over the past decade, with rival governments claiming control until a UN-led process installed an interim government in 2021.

Burundi Plans Biometric ID Card

The government of Burundi, meanwhile, is preparing to issue biometric ID cards for use in elections planned for 2025. According to a BNN Breaking report, cards have already been printed for use in 11 pilots in the country, but challenges remain, including frequent power outages, a lack of skilled IT professionals, and a lack of transparency in the country’s procurement processes.

IRS to Use ID.me Checks in Direct Filing Pilot

American taxpayers who want to participate in the IRS’s direct online tax filing pilot will need to verify their identity through ID.me, the tax agency has announced. The IRS had got into hot water in 2022 after announcing that all taxpayers would need to use ID.me, which primarily authenticates individuals through selfie-based biometric authentication, and eventually walked back the plan. But an alternative online identity verification services, Login.gov, was subsequently criticized for failing to meet NIST’s Identity Assurance Level 2 standard, which would necessitate the use of biometric identity verification. In any case, online tax filing is only being trialed in certain states, and it will not be required of taxpayers. They can still go the traditional route.

Innovatrics Claims Top Accuracy Ranking in NIST ELFT

Innovatrics is claiming the top ranking for accuracy in the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)’s ELFT evaluation program, which tests algorithms designed for latent fingerprints. Innovatrics says it has obtained a hit rate of 93.3 percent. In a statement, the company asserted that hit rate is the most important metric for forensic laboratories dealing with latent prints. “For law enforcement purposes, ours is now the most accurate algorithm for latent fingerprint matching,” said Innovatrics’ ABIS Business Unit Director, Matus Kapusta.

TSA Trials Samsung’s Mobile ID

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is now trialing Samsung’s mobile ID at the Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. At select TSA checkpoints, travelers can present their digital driver’s license or state ID, hosted in the Samsung Wallet mobile app, to CAT-2 self-service kiosks, which can read the ID data via Bluetooth. The CAT-2 readers will compare the encrypted data from the mobile ID to a real-time image of the traveler’s face, and to reservation data on the traveler’s boarding pass. The TSA seems to view Sky Harbor as an ideal testing ground; it was also the first airport at which Apple’s mobile ID could be officially accepted, starting in March of last year.

Burger King to Offer Discounts Based on Hangover Biometrics

In Brazil, Burger King has launched a new online tool that it says will offer discounts on its burgers to people with hangovers, with biometric technology being used to detect the severity of the ailment in a given customer. It’s a marketing stunt concocted by the agency DM9, and will run until January 2. The hangover biometrics app will rate individuals based on three levels of hangover severity, and offer corresponding discounts on Whopper burgers. It isn’t clear if the tech has been evaluated against NIST standards, but it’s a fair bet that it would violate the European Union AI Act’s prohibitions on emotion recognition.

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December 21, 2023 – by Alex Perala