U.S. homeland security abandons plan for face scans for U.S. citizens

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

U.S. DECEMBER 5, 2019 / 12:56 PM / UPDATED 10 HOURS AGO

U.S. homeland security abandons plan for face scans for U.S. citizens

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration said Thursday it no longer plans to propose a regulation next year that would require all travelers - including U.S. citizens - to be photographed when entering or leaving the United States.

The proposed regulation was slated to be issued in July by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) as part of the Trump administration’s regulatory agenda. The agency said Thursday after consulting Congress and privacy experts it would not move forward. “There are no current plans to require U.S. citizens to provide photographs upon entry and exit from the United States. CBP intends to have the planned regulatory action regarding U.S. citizens removed from the unified agenda next time it is published,” the agency said.

Senator Ed Markey, a Democrat, credited public pressure with the decision, which he called “a victory for every single American traveler who flies on a plane.”

Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-immigration-privacy/u-s-homeland-security-abandons-plan-for-face-scans-for-u-s-citizens-idUSKBN1Y92BT

[Pachamama]

1. They are however already doing it - ever time you enter & go to the machines that ask you

...questions for customs and agriculture it takes your picture.

They have this in a database - the machine first scans your passport, confirms on the screen what flight you arrived on, and then it takes a photo of you standing there.

I call bullshit. They have been gathering info and actively installed these machines in every arrival for international arrivals for both US citizens and visitors in last two years.

[Eugene]

2. U.S. citizens can opt out of the scans and scans are incoming only.

DHS wanted to make the scans compulsory coming in and going out.

[Pachamama]

3. Not these - they are different and mandatory

That’s my point -the data is already separately being collected by them

You are referring to the camera at the station with border and customs patrol asking questions and looking at your passport. I am referring to the 100’s of automated machines now installed at each port of entry that you have to go to before you get to that customs and border patrol.

They already have your passport scanned in, know the flight you arrived on and took your picture and it’s in a database. They are already gathering the info.

You are correct about outgoing. That part they don’t have - although it is still collected when the info is collected by each airline and then by the arriving country and available in the Interpol database.