Smile! Uncle Sam wants to scan your face on the way in – and out
Planning to visit the United States in the near future? If so, get ready to have your picture taken – and stored for decades – upon both entry and exit under a new Customs and Border Protection rule.
The final rule was published on Monday, and expands the Department of Homeland Security’s policy of collecting biometric data (primarily in the form of a photograph) to begin requiring photographs at points of exit as well as entry. While the department’s Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency has been collecting biometric data from foreign visitors to the US since 2004, “there is no comprehensive system in place to collect biometrics from aliens departing the country,” it said.
“This rule simply amends DHS regulations to provide that DHS may require all aliens to be photographed when entering or exiting the United States,” CBP Assistant Commissioner for Public Affairs Hilton Beckham told The Register.
CBP wrote that requiring photographs of foreigners on entry and exit to the US would help prevent terrorism, limit the fraudulent use of travel documents, and identify anyone who attempts to leave the US beyond their authorized stay in the country.
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