AENA Turns to FacePhi for Airport Onboarding and Authentication

FacePhi is targeting the air travel sector through a new partnership with Spain’s top airport operator. AENA currently manages dozens of airports in Spain and beyond, and will be using FacePhi’s face-based onboarding and authentication technology to enroll passengers and employees in a number of different identification programs.

The contract will run for a period of four years, and is worth roughly €1.5 million. FacePhi also stressed that its technology will be used strictly on an opt-in basis, and will not be used in any surveillance applications. Those restrictions are in keeping with the company’s broader commitment to the ethical use of facial recognition.

So what will AENA be doing with FacePhi’s technology? On the public-facing front, FacePhi will help AENA register people in different passenger screening systems. Once registered, people will be able to pass through airport checkpoints with only a facial recognition scan, and will enjoy a more streamlined passenger journey that minimizes physical contact between passengers and airport staff. People would be able to use such systems to check-in and to pass through security, and to enter VIP lounges and board their planes once inside the airport.

AENA will also use FacePhi internally to verify the identities of employees. The technology can help with access control, and will make operations more efficient while eliminating the need for physical identification cards.

In both scenarios, facial recognition matches will only be conducted at discrete times and locations, and only with the informed consent of the person being scanned. Opting into the program does not grant consent for surveillance operations.

“This contract showcases how our roadmap is helping us reach our set goals regarding growth and expansion to new sectors and markets,” said FacePhi President and CEO Javier Mira. “This project is also a clear example of the values that FacePhi has always defended, because it is about using biometrics to make people’s lives easier, while making an ethical use of it.”

FacePhi is based in Spain, and was recently listed as a strategic company by the Spanish government. The company is best known for providing remote onboarding solutions for the financial sector. AENA, meanwhile, has already installed biometric gates at airports in Valencia, Bilbao, and Madrid, and previously updated its biometric infrastructure through a partnership with Atos back in 2019.

–

November 22, 2021 – by Eric Weiss