Biometric Technology and Civil Liberties Affirmative Argument Presented

Biometric Technology and Civil Liberties: Affirmative Argument Presented by: Katie Bull Patty Escamilla Ryan Grace Shelby Kovant Susie Wallingford Computer Science 1: Debate Spring 2008 Professor Forbes

What are Biometric Technologies? ¢ The “automated use of physiological and behavioral traits to verify identity. ” Physiological: fingerprints, iris recognition, face recognition, hand geometry, odor, DNA l Behavioral: voice and speech recognition, typing patterns/style, signature l

Benefits of Biometric Technologies to Employers ¢ Increased security sensitive information can be protected with more than a password l Biometrics can deter and detect fraudulent account access l No badge sharing in secure areas l No shared or compromised passwords l ¢ Reduced costs

Benefits of Biometric Technologies to Employees ¢ Convenience l l ¢ Security l ¢ No passwords to remember or reset (or have stolen) Faster login Confidential files can be stored securely Non-repudiation l Biometric transactions are difficult to refute

Other Benefits of Biometric Technology ¢ Identity theft Reduce the risk of identity theft l This can give people confidence and can bolster online commerce l ¢ Missing persons l Children whose parents store their biometric information can be tracked down more easily if kidnapped or missing

Other Benefits of Biometric Technology ¢ Medical Information l l ¢ In the case of medical emergencies, hospitals can use biometric technologies to transfer medical information This information, if protected by biometric technology, can be held securely without as much risk of being lost or stolen Reduce human error

Biometric Technology and Privacy If designed with appropriate protocols to ensure privacy before implementation, there is little risk to personal security ¢ Two part strategy: ¢ These protocols can be part of the hardware (and thus designed into the system) and l enhanced through operational guidelines and systems oversight l

Weaknesses in Current Security ¢ Forms of security based on items and knowledge people posses have many weaknesses l l Fake ‘blanks’ Manufacturing equipment has placed the ability to forge these types of documents into the hands of a much larger group of criminals than ever before Random credit card number generators have made identity theft much more common Breaches of security in airports have led to acts of terrorism

The ‘technology’ in Biometric Technology ¢ Determining matches: l l ¢ Security: l ¢ Biometric templates are used to determine degree of similarity or correlation Using templates is much more secure than a system storing detailed personal information Templates are encrypted when in transit and storage to protect against being compromised Ongoing Support: l Updated technology and security systems can be installed following the initial enrollment to further protect information

Ethics of Using Biometric Technology ¢ ¢ ¢ Supporters of biometric technology do not believe that civil liberties should be compromised in the name of security Biometric technologies will not necessarily be used by the government to catalog every person in the country The Heritage Foundation has proposed a code of ethics for using biometric technology in the general public:

Code of Ethics for Using Biometric Technologies ¢ Enrollment in biometric systems should be overt and not covert l Users should never unwillingly have to give up their biometric information ¢ Biometric systems are better used for verification than identification l Gives the chance for a 1: 1 match instead of 1: many ¢ Biometric systems should be designed to operate with local storage instead of central storage l This will prevent large-scale theft of information

Code of Ethics for Using Biometric Technologies One should prefer biometric systems that are optional instead of required ¢ Biometric systems should use forms of verified pseudonymity ¢ l ¢ This will maintain anonymity Biometric systems should have strong audit/oversight programs to prevent misuse l Privacy Act of 1874 limits the ability of federal agents to collect, use, or disclose personal information like biometric data

What Does Biometric Technology Mean for Americans? ¢ Biometric systems should not be installed on everything – there is a time and place for their usage ¢ Biometric systems should only be installed when they can increase security without putting civil liberties at risk

Biometric Technology and Airports ¢ ¢ ¢ At airports, human screeners miss knives 70% of the time, guns 30% of the time, and simulated explosives 60% of the time Increased use of biometric systems could increase efficiency and decrease human error Biometric systems (ie, fingerprint scanner) could be used to identify criminals from frequent flyers l Someone with a criminal record would be stopped for additional screening, while a low-risk person could go through a less intense screening process

Biometric Technology and Terrorism ¢ The Heritage Foundation: l Advanced technology is a competitive advantage for the United States l At the Congressional Joint Inquiry into the events of Sept. 11, it was realized that there were noting systemic failures that played a role in the inability to prevent the terrorist attacks. l Perhaps, if biometric technology had been used, these attacks may have been prevented l The development and implementation of biometric systems with appropriate safeguards will help avoid repeating this mistake

When to Apply Biometric Technologies ¢ Reserve biometric systems for the use of protecting large or sensitive things l l High level security jobs (ie, CIA, work with live viruses, etc) Medical information Cars or homes – lower level items that individuals could install biometric systems in (some car manufacturers already do this) IBM has fingerprint scanners on some of its laptop models

Use of Biometric Technologies in Other Countries ¢ Germany l l ¢ Israel l l ¢ In May 2005 the German Upper House of Parliament approved the implementation of the e. Pass, a passport issued to all German citizens which contain biometric technology. Germany is one of the first countries to implement biometric technology at the Olympic Games to protect German athletes, sparked by Munich terrorism in 1972. Tel Aviv Ben Gurion Airport has a fast check-in system which uses a biometric smartcard. For a traveler to pass through the smartcard system takes less than 10 seconds. The border crossing points from Israel to the Gaza Strip and West Bank are controlled by biometric security gates through which authorized Palestinians may pass. England

Biometric Technology and Civil Liberties ¢ ¢ Much of the criticism of biometric technology seems to stem from a stigma Americans place on giving up personal information, not necessarily a legitimate fear of infringement on privacy In reality, biometric systems are a secure way to protect private information; if used properly and supported by strong policies, biometric technologies can become a safe and effective way to keep personal information private

Work Cited Page Rosenzweig, Paul, Alane Kochems, and Ari Schwartz. “Biometric Technologies: Security, Legal, and Policy Implications. ” Heritage Foundation. 21 June 2004. <http: //www. heritage. org/Research/Homeland. Security/lm 12. cfm>. Biometrics: The Unique Identification of Human Characteristics. “Biometric Technology. ” 31 March 2008. <http: //et. wcu. edu/aidc/Bio. Web. Pages/Biometrics_Technology. html>. Biometrics: The Unique Identification of Human Characteristics. “Biometric outlook. ” 31 March 2008. <http: //et. wcu. edu/aidc/Bio. Web. Pages/Biometric_Outlook. html>. Biometrics: The Unique Identification of Human Characteristics. “Biometric Applications. ” 31 March 2008. <http: //et. wcu. edu/aidc/Bio. Web. Pages/Biometric_Applications. html>. Davies, Simon G. "Touching Big Brother: How biometric technology will fuse flesh and machine. ” Information Technology & People 7. 4 (1994). 31 March 2008 <http: //www. privacy. org/pi/reports/biometric. html>.