Posted on 12/06/2006 6:55:33 PM PST by blam
Face scans for air passengers a step nearer
By Tim Hall
Last Updated: 2:47am GMT 07/12/2006
Passengers at Heathrow had their fingerprints taken for the first time yesterday, in tests which could lead to routine biometric scanning at Britain's airports.
A high-tech scanner was unveiled by the Government and eventually all passengers could be required to have iris and face scans.
Initially, passengers are being invited to have their fingerprints scanned in return for skipping boarding queues. If the scheme, known as miSense, proves succesful, it could be rolled out across the UK.
Yesterday Liam Byrne, the immigration minister, said the scanning system would improve security as well as allow passengers to move through check-in more quickly.
"This is a good example of how ID cards will be useful when helping people move through security," he said. "I think it's going to be popular. People want secure borders. If we can find a way of strengthening security and making it easier for legitimate travellers to move around then I think the public are going to want that."
He said he did not see the system, which is being piloted over the next 12 months, as a "stand-alone scheme".
The Government wanted to see it used as part of efforts to control immigration and to check the identity of people coming to live in this country.
Mr Byrne added that, while the Government had never said ID cards would be compulsory, he could envisage a time when such technology was commonplace.
The miSense system will be trialled at Heathrow's Terminal 3 initially for passengers on Emirates and Cathay Pacific flights to Hong Kong and Dubai. Passengers will be able to register their fingerprints and their passport at the beginning of the check-in process and use that as their "key" to get through passport checks and boarding.
In stage two of the trial, all passengers flying from Terminal 3 will be able to enrol in the system by registering 13 different pieces of biometric data — their 10 fingerprints, a scan of each eye and a scan of their face — which will then be linked to their passport.
They will be issued with a membership card which they can use to fast track through immigration using only their fingerprints to prove their identity.
It is hoped that the system, if found successful, would be adopted in airports across the world.
Now fully socialized, England makes a good testing ground for a technocratic/utilitarian future.
If things go badly..... nothing lost.
SCANNER DESTROYED
GEEEZ! Now my irises AND retinas are destroyed!
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