Authorities Plan Face-Scanning Security for Tokyo Olympics, Paralympics

Japanese authorities are planning to use facial recognition-based security in the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics in Tokyo.

As Japan Times reports, the measure won’t apply to spectators, but for participants including athletes and officials, as well as media representatives. These individuals will be issued ID cards by the games’ organizers, and their faces will be matched to these IDs when they enter venues for the games. Authorities expect to issue somewhere between 300,000 and 400,000 of these IDs.

Organizers say that the system is aimed at improving security and protecting against terrorism. Spectators, meanwhile, will only need to show their tickets and submit to the occasional luggage check when they enter venues.

The move is another indication of Japanese authorities’ enthusiasm for biometric technology, with government authorities currently expanding the use of facial recognition in airport border screening. Authorities are also reportedly preparing a system that will allow visitors for the Olympics and Paralympics to link their payment accounts to their fingerprints, enabling them to make purchases with a fingerprint scan.

As for the facial scanning security for the Olympics and Paralympics, the biometric technology is being provided by NEC Corporation, whose facial recognition tech has seen a range of security deployments, including at sporting events.

Source: The Japan Times

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January 3, 2018 – by Alex Perala