U.S. senators want to know how secure data from Clear coronavirus app is

A pair of U.S. senators feel biometrics services firm Secure Identity LLC is not living up to its better known market name, Clear.

Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) want to know more about how the company’s new Health Pass service protects and uses the biometric information of its subscribers.

Health Pass is a phone app, designed to securely link a person to their verifiable COVID-19 health status.

Using the app, subscribers create accounts, first verifying their identity with facial-recognition software. Then they take a health quiz before uploading relevant lab results or linking the app to their testing company.

The information is encrypted in a QR code that is scanned by arriving employees.

Clear Pass is Secure Identity’s revenue generator. Paired with the Department of Homeland Security’s PreCheck identification program for travelers, Clear confirms a person’s identity for international travel and sports stadiums.

At participating airports, subscribers returning to the United States can use the company’s dedicated Clear identification lane, which are typically far shorter than general boarding queues. Secure Identity says their customers do not have to take off their shoes or declare liquids for carry-on.

While the firm, which could not be reached before deadline, does not prominently display its 14-point product privacy policy, it is on the site and addresses some of the senators’ questions.

For instance, Secure Identity states what and how information is gathered and retained, what information is shared and disclosure options subscribers have.

There is a portion about security precautions that some privacy advocates will feel is too brief considering that it is part of a policy that is itself lengthy compared to many online.

Merkley and Booker appear to be motivated by the massive data breach at secretive face-recognition service firm Clearview AI. Without individual consent, the company has gathered at least 3 billion face images from law enforcement databases and more-public sources including social media platforms.

In February, it was reported that Clearview AI’s entire database, which is presumed to have grown still larger since then, was hacked. Some privacy advocates have criticized the company for how it gathers images and its lack of transparency in regards to data security.

Merkley and Booker proposed the “Ethical Use of Facial Recognition Act” in the Senate earlier this year.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  CLEAR  |  data collection  |  data protection  |  facial recognition  |  Health Pass by Clear  |  identity verification  |  mobile app  |  privacy  |  United States