One US school backs out of biometrics contract, another is going big

With almost no explanation, a high school in the U.S. state of Maine reportedly has backed out of a biometric identification contract.

According to local news publisher The Maine Wire, officials at Caribou High School have sent word to the parents of 460 students that they were looking for another attendance system.

No other details reportedly were offered.

Earlier reports indicated that a contract with biometrics vendor identiMetrics had been signed. The system was to be operational this year.

The publication wrote that a previous note sent by principal Jami Selfridge to parents talked about the news system but did not say what steps had been taken to secure student biometric data.

The state of West Virginia, which, like Maine, is a largely rural region, is building a bigger and more expansive biometrics system.

Systems integrator ROC.ai was hired in 2022 to install facial recognition and license plate reading software, according to WV News. Five school districts in the state were covered in the contract.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  children  |  facial recognition  |  Identimetrics  |  ROC  |  school security  |  schools