Mexico courts pause biometric CURP project over data privacy concerns

The Unique Personal Registry Code (biometric CURP) project in Mexico, which requires the compulsory submission of face, fingerprints and iris biometrics, is not going ahead as planned in some parts of the country following court injunctions.

The new personal identification system, which was made mandatory in July, has been halted by at least three tribunals after a barrage of criticisms and legal challenges over data security and privacy, Yucatán Magazine reports.

One of the suspensions follows a decision from the Collegiate Tribunal for Criminal and Administrative Matters in Yucatán, when it ruled on the filing of a complaint by an individual.

Similar decisions to suspend the mandatory biometric collection have also been granted by tribunals in Mexico City and Querétaro.

At the time of introducing the system, the Mexican government stated that the 18-digit digital ID system will help in streaming identity verification, including for the location of persons declared missing. The CURB system was first introduced in the country in 1996, but the current version is biometric-based and embedded with a QR code.

The courts however say that the government must balance its good intensions on the project with concrete legislative and government frameworks to effectively project citizens’ data.

Last month, the country’s Ministry of Interior, through the National Population and Identity Registry (Renapo), announced a $28 million tender for a cloud and cybersecurity infrastructure services contract to ensure the security and privacy of citizens’ data associated with the CURP system.

This move however doesn’t appear convincing to digital rights advocates who believe more satisfactory measures have to be adopted if the system must proceed. They are also calling for assurances and guarantees that the CURB biometric system will not be used by the state as a digital surveillance tool.

The court injunctions come as a blow to the government which had set an October 16 deadline for public authorities to mandatorily accept the CURB as the primary ID verification system. Nationwide rollout is slated for 2026.

There are fears in a number of other countries such as Uganda where the country’s biometric national ID system is labelled by rights advocates as a digital surveillance danger.

 

Article Topics

biometrics  |  Clave Única de Registro de Población (CURP)  |  data privacy  |  digital ID  |  Mexico  |  national ID