Convenience is motivating people to use biometric identification at airports in the U.S., aviation industry leaders said in a webinar this week on educating passengers. Meanwhile, airports in Saudi Arabia, France, and Thailand are all in different phases of rolling out biometric check-in options at their airports to streamline and secure travel.

Industry leaders talk public education with Future Travel Experience

In a Future Travel Experience podcast on Thursday, industry leaders explored how to communicate the potential of biometrics at airports to bring a more secure, streamlined travel experience while ensuring privacy. The U.S. Transportation Security Administration is currently exploring the use of biometrics for identity verification at traveler checkpoints.

U.S. states like Iowa, California, and Arizona have recently expanded their digital ID programs to be more integrated into more areas where ID checks happen, like airports. TSA PreCheck allows individuals to authenticate using digital IDs at all checkpoints and allows users to opt out of the system entirely if they would rather go through the traditional verification process.

The agency is currently using the second generation of its credential authentication technology (CAT2), developed by Idemia. In addition to the ID fraud detection capabilities of the first generation, CAT2 performs one-to-one matching between a physical or digital ID and face biometrics, ensuring both that the ID is authentic and that the individual is the correct person identified.

While industry stakeholders may see the use of biometrics as a win for security and safety, “people are opting in because of that third element,” convenience, says Lisa Sullivan, VP of travel and transport at Idemia. “We always constantly think about that from the industry perspective. But consumers are really excited about the frictionless aspect of it.”

Saudi Arabia airport to launch pilot program

At its annual general meeting in Riyadh this week, the Arab Air Carriers Organization (AACO) and air transport IT provider SITA announced they are launching pilots of SITA’s Travel Digital Identity Solution. The digital ID check trials will take place at three AACO airlines over the next few months.

The new system will replace multiple physical ID checks at airport check-in, security, and boarding checkpoints with a digital ID check that is verified at each checkpoint.

The service will verify a passenger’s identity by matching an individual’s biometrics on their physical documents to an ICAO-compliant digital ID on their smartphone, consolidating travel documents.

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