US surveillance watchdog says expanded use of facial recognition at airports should be voluntary

The U.S. Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board released findings from a six-year review of TSA’s facial recognition use at airport checkpoints, urging greater transparency, optional participation, improved demographic accuracy, stricter data retention limits, and stronger privacy safeguards. It recommends DHS/TSA publicly test and report both human and system accuracy, require vendors to meet equitable performance across demographics, publish privacy impact assessments and details on algorithms/training data, establish processes for traveler inquiries and complaints, and explore privacy-enhancing technologies, while noting current program risks are significantly mitigated yet concerns about surveillance persist.