The U.S. Department of Homeland Security implemented a preliminary two-week test of iris-scanning electronics at the U.S.-Mexico border patrol station in McAllen, Texas last winter.
Prior to administering the test, DHS clientele had not appealed for utilization of the identification technical alloy as an increased security development.
The dry run was simply a procedure of “operational feasibility” according to DHS spokeswoman Amy Kudwa. Stationing the scanners would require advances in database software that have yet to be discovered.
The privacy impact assessment for the Iris and Face Technology Demonstration and Evaluation, claims the DHS Science and Technology committee supported the trial run with financial backing from the US-VISIT program and the national programs and protection board. The names of the three corporations supplying the DHS with the equipment were withheld.
Immigration was the subject of the exhibition; the scanners assisted in classifying and handling illegal aliens.
High-resolution images of the irises are the foundation for identity recognition used in the technology. The picture of the individual’s eye is then processed and documented. However, the DHS claims all information obtained during the McAllen study was in disconnect of any federal storage system and was stored in a separate and secure database.
The risk of civil liberties violations is heightened as the Federal government continues to prospect new technologies in enhancing border surveillance at the Mexico perimeter. The McAllen study and other surveillance projects have come under fire from the American Civil Liberties Union and other committees concerned with privacy.
California’s neighboring margin and it’s proximity to Mexico continues to motivate the DHS to push the limit line in an effort to tighten it’s hold on the number of crossers.
This border defense operative follows the recent collapse of the SBInet program. The “virtual fence” outlining the southern tip of the nation pulled on Congress’ purse strings and utilized machinery ill-suited for the terrain and environmental landscape.
California’s neighboring margin and it’s proximity to Mexico continues to motivate the DHS to push the limit line in an effort to tighten it’s hold on the number of crossers.
Source: DHS Testing Iris Scanners At U.S. Border TECHWEB September 13, 2010 Monday 1:30 PM GMT
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