Officials warn of misuse of biometric data
12 June, 2009
category: Biometrics, Government
Roger Sullivan, president of the Liberty Alliance Project that represents roughly 150 companies involved in the biometrics industry, has warned Canadians to be vigilant as Ottawa adopts fingerprint and facial biometrics for its borders, according to a Globe and Mail article.
Sullivan explains that while biometric adoption can be very helpful to the operations at areas like borders, organizations need to be careful regarding the security of stored data as well as citizens should be ensured that their information is not being shared with third-party companies or organizations.
The warning from Sullivan has come as a response to two program s moving forward in Canada in the ensuing years. The first being the collection of digital fingerprints from all visitors and temporary residents starting in 2013 as well as an e-passport program the country has been putting together expected to launch in 2011. While biometric programs such as these are not new, the U.S. and EU both have similar programs to both of these already underway, the potential dangers when taking large leaps forward such as this are what have experts such as Sullivan worried.
Read the full story here.