Facial recognition operating at CBX

U.S. Customs and Border Protection recently added new biometric facial comparison technology at the Cross Border Xpress terminal to bolster security and streamline travel into the country, authorities said.

When a traveler arrives from the Tijuana International Airport through the pedestrian skybridge that connects to San Diego, he or she will stop for a photo at the primary inspection point.

An officer will retrieve the traveler's passport or visa photo from the government database. The new photo taken on site will be compared to the one previously collected, authorities explained.

This process only takes a few seconds and is over 97 percent accurate, according to CBP.

U.S. citizens can opt out of the new biometric process and can let an officer know upon arrival. These travelers will be required to present their travel documents as is usually required to enter the country.

The technology was put in place before the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. Jorge Goytortúa, the CBX CEO, noticed that it's improving the processing times of travelers and supporting safety by limiting physical contact.

“This gives us what we have been working on for so long, which is a touchless process, and allows us to make a faster, more efficient crossing, which complements all the technological actions and developments that we have had at CBX,” he stated.

To date, more than 53 million passengers have participated in the biometric facial comparison process at sea, air and land ports of entry.

Since September 2018, CBP has detected nearly 300 imposters trying to enter the country by using genuine travel documents that were issued to other people, according to the agency.

Currently, 27 airports in the U.S. use biometric facial comparison technology for international arrivals, known as Simplified Arrival, and 26 do so on exits.

“CBP is expanding the use of biometric facial comparison technology as part of its innovation efforts to provide an additional layer of security while streamlining touchless travel of the future,” Diane Sabatino, Deputy Executive Assistant Commissioner on Field Operations with CBP, said in a statement.

On privacy concerns, the federal agency said photos taken of U.S. citizens will be deleted within 12 hours, while those of foreign nationals will be stored in a secure system, the agency said.