CBP’s App Woes, NY Bills, and Rat Recognition: 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:

CBP Asylum App’s Facial Recognition is Prone to Error: Report

The CBP One mobile app is reportedly having trouble mapping the faces of end users. US Customs and Border Protection now requires migrants claiming asylum in the United States to register using the app, but its facial recognition system is error-prone, according to The San Diego Union-Tribune. It’s one of a number of issues with the app that have been flagged by migrants since its launch earlier this month.

Proposed NYC Law Targets Biometric Employee Monitoring

New York City is considering legislation that would prohibit employers from making discharge decisions based on ‘electronic monitoring’ technologies, including systems that collect biometric data. The legislation, “Int 0837-2022”, is mainly concerned with ensuring that employees aren’t fired without “just cause or a bona fide economic reason,” and the reason can’t be based on electronic monitoring, which the bill defines as ““the collection of information concerning employee activities, communications, actions, biometrics or behaviors by electronic means including, but not limited to, video or audio surveillance, electronic employee work speed data.”

Proposed NY State Law Targets MSG’s Dolan

Proposed state legislation in New York from Democrats Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal, state Sen. Liz Krueger and Assemblyman Tony Simone would prevent Madison Square Garden CEO James Dolan from banning perceived enemies from his sports venues, according to its proponents. A surveillance system based on facial recognition at Radio City Music Hall had been used to eject a lawyer involved in cases against MSG from a Christmas concert at the end of last year, provoking outrage. The proposed legislation isn’t targeting facial recognition per se; rather, it would ensure the right of consumers to enter sports venues for which they have purchased tickets.

Argentina Moves to Require Biometric SIM Registration

Argentina’s National Communications Authority (“Enacom”) has determined that mobile phone operators must implement a biometric registration system for the issuance of new SIM cards. The aim is to prevent illegal SIM swapping, in which fraudsters report a missing SIM card in order to persuade a mobile operator to transfer a customer account to a new SIM. According to a report, Enacom will release detailed guidelines on the biometric SIM registration requirement by the end of the month.

PopID Partners With Qatar National Bank

Qatar National Bank (QNB) has partnered with PopID to offer the latter’s biometric payment solution to its customers. Merchants that take advantage of the solution will be able to offer customers a payment option that is based solely on a face scan, with no need to present a card, cash, or any other hardware token. Visa is involved in the collaboration, providing tokenization services. The partnership’s announcement comes after PopID technology was trialed at select Flat White Specialty Coffee branches in venues for the FIFA World Cup last year.

Trust Stamp Gets Trademark Allowance

Trust Stamp has received a Notice of Allowance from the United States Patent and Trademark Office for its “Privacy-First Identity Company” trademark. The Georgia-based company says it has seen 22 banks enroll in paid pilots of its identity verification solutions over the past three months.

PortalGuard Gets Another College Customer

The Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, a part of the University System of Georgia, has opted to use BIO-key’s PortalGuard authentication solution “to provide more secure and frictionless access to institutional systems and critical data,” BIO-key said in a statement. The college is the latest in a string of academic institutions that have recognized the appeal of the Single Sign-On solution.

Pest Control Firm Turns to Rat Recognition

The past control company Rentokil is using rat recognition technology in its efforts to manage a growing population of the pests in the United Kingdom. Its recent acquisition of the Israeli firm Eitan Amichai brought the technology into Rentokil’s arsenal. The company is trying to use it in elaborate surveillance setups that can track the behaviors of individual rats, and can even identity potential “ringleaders”, according to the Daily Mail.

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January 23, 2023 – by Alex Perala

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