25 Mar 2008
The UK's privacy watchdog has raised concerns over the use of fingerprinting for passengers at Heathrow's Terminal 5 (T5).
Airport operator BAA plans to take four biometric fingerprint records and a digital photograph of every passenger who passes through the £4.3bn terminal - which opens on Thursday (27 March).
The plan aims to improve security by ensuring that the person boarding at the gate is the same person who checked in and passed through security checks - a function needed because international and domestic travellers will both use the same airside facilities.
But a spokesman for the Information Commissioner's Office said the watchdog was still looking at the privacy implications of the system.
"We have concerns about the routine collection of fingerprint information from passengers and we will require reassurance from BAA that the data protection implications of the proposals have been fully addressed," she said.
"We will be weighing up the security benefits of the scheme against the impact on privacy and asking what other less intrusive alternatives have been considered."
A similar system already operates in most international airports in the US, though other UK international airports rely on photographs and not fingerprints to perform the same checks.
BAA said all data will be encrypted immediately and destroyed within 24 hours, after the passenger has passed through the system.
Upon returning to London Heathrow from a holiday in New Zealand we followed the flight connections for our Manchester flight. We passed through NO immigration desks or controls and actually left the airport building to board a bus to the domestic terminal. Had we been terrorists we could have gained access to any part of the airport parking apron by simply not getting on the bus. There were NO officials from BAA around. When we arrived at the domestic terminal, there was a huge queue for fingerprinting/photographing (two desks out of seven manned) We were treated like cattle and our protests at being fingerprinted were ignored, as was our request as to who to complain to. When I put my fingers down on the pad incorrectly, I was chastised and made to feel like an idiot in front of everyone. I am all for stricter controls to prevent terrorism but I really object to this disgraceful procedure and the way it is being carried out.
Posted by: Les Robinson 28 Mar 2008
Once again, through the back door and its bed partner (BAA), the British Government has found another way to attack our freedom. This attack in the name of protection is really just a blatant lie by the Govt to get more and more data on you, when the UK is already one of the largest in the world at invading your privacy.
When public bodies work hand in hand with UK authorities to bypass our civil and human rights what are we to think?
All data will supposedly be removed within 24hours, how is this possible when there are laws stating how long a business should retain all data.
What strikes me as even more appaling is that the British public as a whole have little or no issue with this level of invasion.
We are supposed to be tackling terrorists, drug runners and people smugglers to name a few, not Mrs. Marple who decides to bake a cake and take it to her niece in Wales. When she enters the airport she will be photographed and additional bio-metric data will be taken from her.
How does this combat the average terrorist who will probably have never been on a computer alert system and surely will be carrying something much worse than aforementioned cake.
On a footnote it is not surprising that the BAA directors are suckling the teats of MPs and the PM, money, concessions and land is what they need, alongside with the railroading of our freedom . . . new MPs and PMs in the making I think!
Personally I think that BAA is doing all it can to side with the govt to ensure that no further hiccups appear at the door.
Well done BAA directors for destroying the british way of life, what the Govt tried to do and failed you have succeeded at. Sleep well at nights everyone at BAA. Must feel great to be hated by a nation.
Posted by: michael 25 Mar 2008
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