Test to Collect Facial Images From Occupants in Moving Vehicles at the Anzalduas Port of Entry (Anzalduas Biometric Test) |
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Kevin K. McAleenan
Department of Homeland Security
14 November 2018
[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 220 (Wednesday, November 14, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56862-56864]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-24850]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
U.S. Customs and Border Protection
Test to Collect Facial Images From Occupants in Moving Vehicles
at the Anzalduas Port of Entry (Anzalduas Biometric Test)
AGENCY: U.S. Customs and Border Protection; Department of Homeland
Security.
ACTION: General notice.
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SUMMARY: This notice announces that U.S. Customs and Border Protection
(CBP) is conducting a voluntary test to collect biometrics, namely
facial images, from travelers who choose to participate and who are
entering or departing the United States via moving motor vehicles at
the Anzalduas, Texas, land border port of entry (Anzalduas Biometric
Test). CBP is conducting this test to determine the effectiveness of
certain technology. Specifically, the test will: Evaluate the
technology's effectiveness to capture a quality facial image for
occupants within a vehicle while that vehicle is moving; evaluate
biometric matching accuracy of images captured; and, evaluate
transaction time for matching images captured. CBP will not use facial
images collected during this test to identify threats or determine
admissibility. All analysis of the facial images collected during this
test will be conducted off-line at a later time, and no information
collected during this test will be retained in association with an
individual's official border-crossing records. This notice describes
the purpose of the test as well as how the facial images collected will
be used. It also describes the test procedures, the persons covered,
the duration of the test, how CBP will analyze the results, and privacy
considerations.
DATES: This voluntary test began August 30, 2018, and will run for
approximately one year.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Colleen Manaher, Executive Director,
Planning, Program Analysis and Evaluation, U.S. Customs and Border
Protection at (202) 344-3003 or colleen.manaher@cbp.dhs.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has broad authority to
control alien travel and to inspect aliens under various provisions of
the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, as amended (INA).\1\
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\1\ DHS may require aliens to provide biometrics and other
relevant identifying information upon entry to, or departure from,
the United States. Specifically, DHS may control alien entry and
departure and inspect aliens under sections 215(a) and 235 of the
INA (8 U.S.C. 1185, 1225). Aliens may be required to provide
fingerprints, photographs, or other biometrics upon arrival in, or
departure from, the United States, and select classes of aliens may
be required to provide information at any time. See, e.g., INA 214,
215(a), 235, 262(a), 263(a), 264(c), (8 U.S.C. 1184, 1185(a), 1225,
1302(a), 1303(a), 1304(c)); 8 U.S.C. 1365b.
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In addition, numerous federal statutes require DHS to create an
integrated, automated biometric entry and exit system that records the
arrival and departure of aliens, compares the biometric data of aliens
to verify their identity, and authenticates travel documents presented
by such aliens through the comparison of biometrics.\2\
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\2\ As used in this notice, ``biometrics'' means a physical
characteristic or other physical attribute unique to a person that
can be collected, stored, and used to verify the identity of a
person who chooses to participate in the test by using the testing
lanes, as defined in the ``Test Procedures'' section below. To
verify a person's identity, a similar physical characteristic or
attribute is collected and compared against the previously collected
identifier.
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The federal statutes requiring DHS to create a biometric entry and
exit system to record the arrival and departure of aliens include, but
are not limited to:
Section 110 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and
Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, Public Law 104-208, 110 Stat.
3009-546;
Section 2(a) of the Immigration and Naturalization Service
Data Management Improvement Act of 2000 (DMIA), Public Law 106-215, 114
Stat. 337;
Section 205 of the Visa Waiver Permanent Program Act of
2000, Public Law 106-396, 114 Stat. 1637, 1641;
Section 414 of the Uniting and Strengthening America by
Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct
Terrorism Act of 2001 (USA PATRIOT Act), Public Law 107-56, 115 Stat.
272, 353;
Section 302 of the Enhanced Border Security and Visa Entry
Reform Act of 2002 (Border Security Act), Public Law 107-173, 116 Stat.
543, 552;
Section 7208 of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism
Prevention Act of 2004 (IRTPA), Public Law 108-458, 118 Stat. 3638,
3817;
Section 711 of the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/
11 Commission Act of 2007, Public Law 110-52, 121 Stat. 266;
Section 802 of the Trade Facilitation and Trade
Enforcement Act of 2015, Public Law 114-125, 130 Stat. 122, 199 (6
U.S.C. 211(c)(10)).
Additionally, on March 6, 2017, the President signed Executive
Order 13780, Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into
the United States (published in the Federal Register on March 9, 2017;
82 FR 13209). Section 8 of this Order requires the Secretary of
Homeland Security to expedite the completion and implementation of a
biometric entry-exit tracking system for ``in-scope travelers'' \3\ to
the United States.
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\3\ Although the term ``in-scope travelers'' is not defined in
the Executive Order, DHS interprets this to mean those travelers who
are currently required to provide biometric information upon entry
to the United States.
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Pursuant to various authorities under Titles 8 and 19 of the U.S.
Code, and other authorities CBP enforces on behalf of third party
agencies at the border, CBP routinely collects biographic data from
travelers entering and departing the United States. See, e.g., 8 U.S.C.
1181, 1185, 1221; and 19 U.S.C. 1433. Additionally, DHS regulations
authorize DHS to collect biometric data from certain aliens seeking
admission to the United States and to collect biometrics from aliens
upon departure from the United States under pilot programs at land
ports and up to 15 air and seaports. See Sections 215.8 and
235.1(f)(1)(ii) of Title 8 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) (8
CFR 215.8 and 235.1(f)(1)(ii).\4\
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\4\ Certain categories of aliens are exempt from the collection
of biometrics upon entering or departing the United States. See 8
CFR 235.1(f)(1)(ii), (iv); 8 CFR 215.8(a)(1)-(2).
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Since 2004, DHS, through CBP, has been collecting biometric data
from aliens arriving in the United States. However, there is no
comprehensive system in place to collect biometrics from aliens
departing the country. Collecting biometrics at both arrival and
departure will enable CBP and DHS to know with better accuracy whether
aliens are departing the country when they are required to depart,
reduce visa or travel document fraud, and improve CBP's ability to
identify criminals and known or suspected terrorists before they depart
the United States.
CBP has been testing various options to collect biometrics at
departure in the land and air environments. For example, from February
to May 2016, CBP conducted a pilot program to test facial and iris
scanning technology for pedestrian travelers departing through the Otay
Mesa, California, land border port of entry.\5\ CBP is also conducting
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pilots at some airports to evaluate the effectiveness of biometric
facial recognition matching of a real-time photograph of an individual
to a photograph gallery stored in a database.
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\5\ See 80 FR 70241 (Nov. 31, 2015).
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CBP is now conducting a test that involves the collection of facial
images from occupants in moving vehicles as they enter and exit the
United States at the Anzalduas land border port of entry (Anzalduas
Biometric Test). This notice describes the purpose of the test as well
as how the facial images collected will be used. It also describes the
test procedures, the persons covered, the duration of the test, how CBP
will analyze the results, and privacy considerations.
Anzalduas Biometric Test
Overview and Purpose
The Anzalduas Biometric Test is a voluntary test to collect
biometrics, namely facial images, from travelers who choose to
participate and who are entering or departing the United States via
moving motor vehicles at the Anzalduas, Texas, land border port of
entry. This test will help CBP determine the effectiveness of certain
technology used to capture a quality facial image for occupants within
a vehicle while that vehicle is moving, evaluate biometric matching
accuracy of images captured, and evaluate transaction time to conduct a
match of images captured to determine whether a real-time match could
be provided to the CBP Officer. This test is one of CBP's key efforts
in developing the capability to fulfill DHS's mandate to collect
biometric information from arriving and departing aliens. The test
procedures will operate in conjunction with CBP's normal entry-exit
processes but facial images collected during this test will not be used
to identify threats or to determine admissibility.
Normal Entry/Exit Procedures Remain In Place
During this test, the normal entry/exit procedures will apply. This
means that all persons seeking admission at the Anzalduas land border
port of entry must show a valid passport or other acceptable travel
document when entering the United States. Some aliens may also be
required to provide fingerprint biometric data for CBP to verify their
identity upon entry.\6\ All persons exiting the United States at the
Anzalduas land border port of entry may be subject to additional
screening. Some aliens may also be required to provide fingerprint
biometric data for CBP to verify their identity upon exit.
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\6\ Certain aliens, including individuals traveling on A or G
visas and others as specified in 8 CFR 215.8 and 235.1, are exempt
from this requirement.
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The facial images collected during this test will not be analyzed
by CBP officers at the time the traveler enters or exits. Rather, the
facial matching technology will perform matching analysis, which will
be reviewed and analyzed by CBP analysists on the back end for
accuracy, as described below. Therefore, the entry and exit procedures
for both travelers and CBP officers at the Anzalduas port of entry will
not change as a result of this test.
Test Procedures
For this test, cameras have been installed at both entry and exit
lanes which will attempt to capture facial images of all occupants in
vehicles traveling in designated arrival and departure lanes (``testing
lanes'') as the vehicles move through the lane. The cameras are located
prior to the inspection booths where travelers present their travel
documentation to CBP officers. This process is completely passive for
the vehicle occupants and does not require the travelers to engage in
any additional action outside of the normal CBP processing on entry or
exit. All travelers are subject to inspection upon entry to and exit
from the United States, but U.S. citizens and certain categories of
aliens are not specifically required to provide biometrics pursuant to
8 CFR 235.1(f)(1)(ii) and 215.8. For purposes of this pilot, CBP has
provided an optional lane, both inbound and outbound, where no facial
images will be captured for biometric matching purposes (``non-testing
lane''). Due to the difficulty of sorting vehicle occupants by
citizenship or category while they are in a moving vehicle, the non-
testing lane is available for use by any vehicle, regardless of the
occupants' citizenship or status. CBP has posted signs sufficiently in
advance of lane divisions to allow drivers to select their desired
lane. Other than signs indicating non-testing lanes or a flash of light
in the testing lanes when a photo is taken, the travelers should not
notice any differences in the wait times or experience of crossing at
the Anzalduas port of entry.
Use of Facial Images Collected During the Test
CBP will create a photograph gallery of border crossers, which will
include the photographs captured by the cameras at both entry and exit
operations during this test. This gallery will also include photos and
biographical information from travelers' document(s) \7\ that were
previously captured by CBP or another government agency and which are
associated with travelers whose facial images were captured during this
test. CBP will not store or use facial images captured from out-of-
scope aliens or U.S. citizens for the purposes of this test. If an out-
of-scope alien or U.S. citizen chooses to travel through the testing
lanes and his or her facial image is captured, the image will be
deleted as soon as it is identified as an out-of-scope alien or U.S.
citizen by the analysts comparing the matching results of the
technology as described below.
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\7\ Traveler documents include but are not limited to:
passports, visas, and trusted traveler radio-frequency
identification (RFID) cards such as Border Crossing Cards, Enhanced
Driver's Licenses, passport cards, and tribal cards. See 8 CFR 235.1
for complete travel document requirements.
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The facial recognition technology will compare live images captured
during the vehicle crossings with the photos and biographic information
on file and will attempt to match the captured images with identified
facial images in the photograph gallery. All facial images captured
during this test, and previously collected traveler photos and
associated document data will be stored in a secure, standalone
database and analyzed off-line to test the biometric matching
capabilities of the technology. No biometric data will be distributed
from the standalone database, except for analysis and reporting
purposes on the results of the test.\8\
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\8\ As noted above, facial images collected from exempt aliens
or U.S. citizens will be deleted as soon as they are identified as
an exempt alien or U.S. citizen.
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In order to determine the accuracy of the biometric matching
system, CBP analysts will compare the matching results produced by the
facial recognition technology with stored traveler data (e.g., RFID
card scans, traveler biographical information collected by an officer
from travel documents, and license plate data). By reviewing traveler
data that are matched to test images by the system, CBP analysts can
confirm that the traveler associated with a given individual record
with which the technology matched a given facial image did in fact
cross the Anzalduas port of entry on a particular day. For example, if
the technology matches a captured facial image to the photograph on a
certain individual's travel document, an analyst could review the
border crossing biographical records from that day to confirm that the
individual identified by the technology did cross that day.
Alternatively, if the analyst finds no record of that individual
crossing on the
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particular day, CBP may need to do further analysis on the match
provided by the technology to determine if there is a ``false match''
or some other issue. The biographical information provides an
additional level of verification to determine the accuracy of the
facial matching technology.
Persons Covered
Participation in the test is voluntary. All individuals entering or
exiting the United States at the Anzalduas port of entry in a vehicle
may participate by entering and/or exiting through the testing lanes.
Individuals who choose not to participate may use the non-testing
lanes. No person or group of people will be required to use the testing
lanes and there will be no penalty for using the non-testing lanes.
Duration of Test
This voluntary test began August 30, 2018, and will run for
approximately one year.
Analysis of Results
CBP will generally retain facial images collected during this test
until December 2020 for the sole purpose of testing facial recognition
technology against a photograph gallery that most closely simulates
CBP's operational land environment.\9\ All analysis will be performed
on the back end using the standalone database created for this test.
CBP will use the results of this test to assess the operational
feasibility of collecting biometric information from occupants in
moving vehicles entering and exiting at all U.S. land border ports of
entry. CBP will evaluate the test based on a number of criteria,
including:
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\9\ As noted above, facial images collected from exempt aliens
or U.S. citizens will be deleted as soon as they are identified as
an exempt alien or U.S. citizen. Further information about the
retention of facial images will be provided in CBP's Privacy Impact
Assessment (PIA) for Traveler Verification Services (TVS). It will
be available at http://www.dhs.gov/privacy-documents-us-customs-and-border-protection.
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The ability of the technology to capture high-quality
facial images in vehicles traveling at various speeds, and in various
lighting and weather conditions;
the ability of the technology to correctly match the
facial images captured to the correct individuals' facial image(s) on
file; and,
the transaction time to match the facial images captured
to the photograph gallery to determine whether a real-time match could
be provided to the CBP Officer performing traveler screening at the
entry or exit lanes of the port.
Privacy
CBP will ensure that all Privacy Act requirements and applicable
DHS privacy policies are adhered to during the implementation of this
test. Additionally, as noted previously, CBP will be issuing a PIA for
TVS, which will outline how CBP will ensure compliance with Privacy Act
protections and DHS privacy policies, including DHS's Fair Information
Practice Principles (FIPPs). The FIPPs account for the nature and
purpose of the information being collected in relation to DHS's mission
to preserve, protect and secure the United States. The PIA will address
issues such as the security, integrity, and sharing of data, use
limitation and transparency. The PIA will be made publicly available
at: http://www.dhs.gov/privacy-documents-us-customs-and-border-protection.
CBP has also issued an update to the DHS/CBP-007 Border Crossing
Information (BCI) System of Records, which fully encompasses all the
data that is being collected at the Anzalduas land border port of entry
for the purposes of this test. The system of records notice (SORN) was
published in the Federal Register on December 13, 2016 (81 FR 89957).
Paperwork Reduction Act
The Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3507(d))
requires that CBP consider the impact of paperwork and other
information collection burdens imposed on the public. This information
collection is covered by OMB control number 1651-0138. This information
collection has been updated to include information being collected
pursuant to this notice.
Dated: November 7, 2018.
Kevin K. McAleenan,
Commissioner.
[FR Doc. 2018-24850 Filed 11-13-18; 8:45 am]
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