EPIC, Coalition to Senate: Pause TSA’s Facial Recognition Program Now

A coalition of civil society groups urged Senators Schumer, McConnell, Cantwell, and Cruz to pause the TSA’s expansion of facial recognition at airport security checkpoints. The coalition argues that the expansion must be paused for several reasons: 1) The potential for accuracy and bias issues with the facial recognition technology; 2) The lack publicly available, independent review of potential accuracy and bias issues in TSA’s use of facial recognition; 3) The failure of TSA to provide evidence for the agency’s claims that facial recognition makes traveling safer and more efficient; and 4) The shortcomings of the TSA’s current “opt-out” model.

EPIC’s Jeramie Scott has previously argued that TSA’s use of facial recognition is more dangerous than it might seem. EPIC has previously called for a suspension of TSA’s facial recognition program and supported similar calls by members of the Senate. This week the Senate will consider an amendment to the FAA Reauthorization bill that would pause the expansion of TSA’s facial recognition program for three years while requiring annual audits of the program by the Government Accountability Office.