EPIC Sues State Department About Secret Facial Recognition Database

EPIC filed a lawsuit today to compel the State Department to release information about the transfer of facial images, gathered from visa and passport applicants, to other federal agencies. EPIC explained to the federal court in Washington, DC that the Customs and Border agency is now using those images in an unlawful border system. EPIC has called for the suspension of the CBP program. Senators Markey and Lee have also opposed expansion of the CBP program to U.S. citizens. In a related FOIA lawsuit, EPIC obtained documents concerning CBP's facial recognition program. A summary report revealed that the system did not perform operational matching at a "satisfactory" level.