Lawmakers Highlight Security Risks in Airport Screening Process

After the discovery of vulnerabilities in the biometric vetting service operated by Clear Secure Inc., lawmakers said that all airport travelers in the US should "immediately" be required to undergo identity checks by the Transportation Security Administration.
According to a letter from Bennie Thompson of Mississippi and John Katko of New York to the TSA, the Clear verification system contains unspecified "security vulnerabilities." This system provides an expedited airport screening procedure.
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Clear is a New York-based company that uses biometric data to verify identities. This data can include iris scans and facial information. Clear provides its services at airports and venues in more than 40 US cities, and it is an alternative for passengers who want to skip traditional security lines. There is a fee for this service.
Ken Lisaius, a spokesperson for Clear, said that the TSA had asked them to re-enroll approximately 48,000 travelers who had not yet completed a facial match. This is part of the multi-layered registration process. Lisaius went on to say that their policy is to require manager approval in the rare instance when facial recognition technology is unable to confirm a match between an individual and their ID. This can happen for many reasons, such as poor quality document photos, damaged IDs, or poor lighting.
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Lisaius said that the reenrollment process is well underway, and disputed the characterization of the issue as a "vulnerability." He said that the number of people affected is a very small percentage of the service's 14 million members.
Clear disagrees with the request from the lawmakers to require TSA identity checks for all passengers. Our process is secure, and we believe that this additional step is unnecessary.
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According to the trade publication IPVM, Thompson and Katko sent a letter detailing their concerns about the security of the 5G network.
In a statement, the TSA said that it is working with Clear to ensure that its standards are met and that the government’s security systems are being used by all passengers.
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A spokesperson for the Homeland Security Committee's Democratic minority said they have not yet received a response from the TSA.
"We are committed to ensuring the safety of all travelers and will work closely with TSA to address any security vulnerabilities," said Thompson in a statement to Bloomberg.
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After the TSA issued an alert to Congress about potential vulnerabilities in the passenger vetting process used by Clear, lawmakers expressed their concerns in a letter.
The best way to ensure that passengers are adequately vetted against terrorist watchlists is to require them to go through TSA-specific identity verification. This will help to address any sensitive vulnerabilities and ensure accuracy.
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Lawmakers also asked TSA Administrator David Pekoske why passengers weren’t required to go through the government’s verification system after the issue was discovered. Pekoske explained that the TSA is still working on implementing the system and that it will be rolled out in phases.