The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) may be taking a page out of Apple’s book when it comes to identification and security. Apple’s
latest and greatest iPhone, the iPhone X, boasts facial recognition technology that will make proving yourself to your phone more convenient than ever — all you have to do is look at it. DHS wants to provide
similar levels of convenience to travelers crossing U.S. borders.
“This call is looking for innovative solutions to capture facial recognition quality photos from travelers in order to facilitate identity checks without requiring occupants to leave the vehicle,” said the
call for proposals.
DHS’ Silicon Valley office will host an “industry day” on Nov. 14 in order to explore opportunities for making this idea a reality. According to the call for proposals, DHS wants the system to be able to reliably identify occupants of a vehicle even when their faces are obscured by hats or sunglasses, or turned away from the camera.
Kate is a senior copy editor in Northern California. She holds a bachelor's degree in English with a minor in professional writing from the University of California, Davis.