• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises

2

Despite having a $165 million net worth, Scarlett Johansson says work-life balance doesn’t exist—and the first step to success is admitting that

3

Nearly 50,000 Lake Tahoe residents have to find a new power source after their energy source looks to redirect lines to data centers

1

The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises

2

Despite having a $165 million net worth, Scarlett Johansson says work-life balance doesn’t exist—and the first step to success is admitting that

3

Nearly 50,000 Lake Tahoe residents have to find a new power source after their energy source looks to redirect lines to data centers

Orlando Becomes First Airport to Require Face Scans of All International Travelers

By
Renae Reints
Renae Reints
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Renae Reints
Renae Reints
Down Arrow Button Icon
June 21, 2018, 5:24 PM ET

Face scans will be required for all passengers on arriving and departing international flights at Orlando International Airport, the nation’s first airport demand such a security measure.

Airports in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Las Vegas, Miami, New York and Washington already use face scan technology. But they do not require it for every passenger on international flights.

With biometric security, facial images are sent to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), which then compares them with a photo already on file, usually from a passenger’s passport or driver’s license. The database verifies passenger identities and confirms they are meant to be on the flight, usually within three to five seconds.

Privacy advocates worry that the expanded program in Orlando will create problems due to the lack of regulation. There are no formal rules about what happens to the data collected, nor what actions should be taken if a passenger is wrongly blocked from boarding. U.S. citizens can choose to opt-out of the face scan, but some argue that the availability of this option isn’t made clear.

Congress has taken notice of the program’s lack of direction; last month U.S. Senators Ed Markey (D-MA) and Mike Lee (R-UT) sent a letter to the Department of Homeland Security insisting that formal rules be implemented before Florida expands the face-scanning program. They also requested statistics about the program’s accuracy and impostor detection rates. In other words, does the program even work?

“We request that DHS not only include the ‘match rates,’ indicating how often facial scans ‘match’ photos contained in a database, but also the ‘true reject’ rate–the rate at which travelers using fraudulent credentials are accurately rejected,” read the letter.

According to Harrison Rudolph, an associate at the Center on Privacy & Technology at the Georgetown University Law Center, some research shows facial recognition programs are less accurate when it comes to racial minorities, women, and children. This is due to the lack of diversity in the photographs used to train the program, researchers say.

“We’re not talking about one gate,” said Rudolph, expressing his concern with Orlando’s expansion of the face-scanning program. “We’re talking about every international departure gate, which is a huge expansion of the number of people who will be scanned. Errors tend to go up as uses go up.”

The Orlando International Airport is Florida’s busiest airport, with nearly 6 million international travelers passing through last year, a record-breaking number. Steve Karoly, acting assistant administrator at TSA, said biometric security “will make things a little bit easier, more efficient at an airport environment.”

Earlier last year, President Trump signed an executive order encouraging the expansion of the biometric security program. According to NPR, the CBP hopes to install face scanners in all U.S. airports in four years.

About the Author
By Renae Reints
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in

America’s productivity boom started before AI, and a Stanford economist who decoded the Great Resignation says working from home is the reason why
Future of Workremote work
America’s productivity boom started before AI, and a Stanford economist who decoded the Great Resignation says working from home is the reason why
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezMay 15, 2026
27 minutes ago
A man stands looking out over his front porch where a sign reads, "No data centers."
EnvironmentData centers
Startups are installing tiny data centers in people’s homes to reduce strain on the beleaguered electrical grid
By Sasha RogelbergMay 15, 2026
1 hour ago
deep-sea mining equipment
EnvironmentChina
China dominates the minerals that power AI. But one company claims there’s enough supply on the ocean floor to last for hundreds of years
By Jake AngeloMay 15, 2026
3 hours ago
Demand for longer-term U.S. debt gets weaker as one shock after another stokes fear that high inflation is here to stay
EconomyDebt
Demand for longer-term U.S. debt gets weaker as one shock after another stokes fear that high inflation is here to stay
By Jason MaMay 15, 2026
4 hours ago
texas
North AmericaHousing
The new American Dream doesn’t live in a big city. It lives in Celina, Texas
By Nick LichtenbergMay 15, 2026
5 hours ago
Kevin Warsh, U.S. President Donald Trump's nominee for Chair of the Federal Reserve, is sworn in to testify during his Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs confirmation hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on April 21, 2026 in Washington, DC.
EconomyFed interest rates
Dominoes are steadily falling in the path of the rate cuts Trump wants to see from Kevin Warsh
By Eleanor PringleMay 15, 2026
5 hours ago

Most Popular

The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises
Politics
The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises
By Jake AngeloMay 12, 2026
3 days ago
Despite having a $165 million net worth, Scarlett Johansson says work-life balance doesn’t exist—and the first step to success is admitting that
Success
Despite having a $165 million net worth, Scarlett Johansson says work-life balance doesn’t exist—and the first step to success is admitting that
By Preston ForeMay 13, 2026
2 days ago
Nearly 50,000 Lake Tahoe residents have to find a new power source after their energy source looks to redirect lines to data centers
Travel & Leisure
Nearly 50,000 Lake Tahoe residents have to find a new power source after their energy source looks to redirect lines to data centers
By Catherina GioinoMay 12, 2026
3 days ago
Current price of oil as of May 14, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of May 14, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerMay 14, 2026
1 day ago
The airplane fuel shortage is a myth propagated by airlines who want to cancel unprofitable flights, says private jet CEO
Energy
The airplane fuel shortage is a myth propagated by airlines who want to cancel unprofitable flights, says private jet CEO
By Jim EdwardsMay 14, 2026
2 days ago
Steve Jobs used a 'beer test' for interviews at Apple—if he didn’t want to drink with you, you didn’t get the job
Success
Steve Jobs used a 'beer test' for interviews at Apple—if he didn’t want to drink with you, you didn’t get the job
By Orianna Rosa RoyleMay 14, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.