“News of these efforts comes after the Australian government contracted Portugal-based Vision-Box to provide biometric SmartGates for departures at the country’s international airports last summer.”
Australia is on a path toward comprehensive biometric boarding at its airports.
On the private sector side of things, Sydney Airport is preparing to trial a facial recognition system designed to let travelers pass through check-in, baggage deposit, border and security screening, and boarding after one initial passport presentation. The rest of the way, travelers will be identified automatically via biometric scans of their faces as they pass through the airport. The pilot project is planned for the airport’s international terminal.
Meanwhile, Australia’s recently appointed Minister for Home Affairs, Peter Dutton, said that a similar system that has been trialled at Australia’s Canberra Airport has so far produced a 90 percent success rate, and suggested that the government’s aim is ultimately to bring biometric boarding – and screening – systems to all of the country’s airports. Speaking to the press, Dutton stressed the efficiency benefits of such a system, asserting, “I don’t have the staff, and never will, to provide the scrutiny that’s required” for the volumes of travelers coming to the country. But security is also of high interest to the Minister, who earlier this month proposed legislation to Australia’s House of Representatives aimed at establishing a biometric photo matching system to be shared between federal and state agencies.
News of these efforts comes after the Australian government contracted Portugal-based Vision-Box to provide biometric SmartGates for departures at the country’s international airports last summer. It also arrives amid a rapidly expanding biometric airport screening program, also based on facial recognition, in the United States.
Sources: The Sydney Morning Herald, ZDNet
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February 22, 2018 – by Alex Perala
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