YVR to become first Canadian airport to use facial recognition at Nexus kiosks
Credit to Author: Susan Lazaruk| Date: Sun, 03 Nov 2019 21:28:23 +0000
Vancouver airport will become the first Canadian airport to use facial recognition for Nexus cardholders returning from the U.S. and overseas.
Nexus cardholders, who pay a fee and submit to screening through the joint U.S.-Canada program to bypass regular security lines, will be prompted to download their photo from their passport the next time they go through a Nexus line.
The kiosks that identify passengers through facial features replace the iris scanners in Nexus kiosks.
Travellers arriving in airports across Canada without Nexus cards have been subject to facial recognition technology at international airports, including YVR, for two years.
CBSA said in an emailed statement the switch “allows the CBSA to align its biometric collection and verification practices with internationally recognized standards and trends.”
The CBSA also said the collection, use and sharing of information is protected by privacy legislation in Canada and the U.S. “No personal information is stored on the kiosk,” it says. “The only information retained is saved securely on CBSA systems, in accordance with government information, privacy and security policies.”
But the B.C. Civil Liberties Association said studies have shown biometric scanning, whether of faces or irises, is troubling because it can be unreliable and can be used for other purposes, said staff lawyer Meghan McDermott.
For instance, there are concerns that the scans can be used without an individual’s knowledge or consent to compare stored images to those of crime suspects or known terrorists. In the U.S., the Department of Homeland Security collects biometric information on anyone who leaves the U.S., said McDermott.
In addition, both countries’ border agencies in the past have shown they “lack oversight, due process and transparency,” she said. “If there is a security breach, how would we hold them accountable?” she said, adding her group has been fighting for more transparency at Canada Border Services for years.
“There is no independent oversight mechanism at all,” she said.
The reason for the switch to facial recognition appears vague, she said. “We aren’t given enough information to really understand the technology and we can’t assess why they need this and why it’s more beneficial than some other technology,” she said.
And she said Canadian Nexus cardholders shouldn’t be reassured by CBSA saying that the data is protected by U.S. privacy laws because non-Americans aren’t protected by those laws.
The new kiosks will be rolled out to other airports after Vancouver’s, including Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg and Halifax.
“The CBSA’s goal to increase efficiencies without compromising security,” said the CBSA, adding the photos “will be used solely for the purposes of identity verification during passage.”
Vancouver International Airport will become the first airport in Canada to employ facial recognition technology. The automated kiosks for Nexus cardholders -— those who are screened and pay a fee to receive a Nexus card for expedited boarding and customs crossings — will download and store the cardholder’s passport photo.
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