How to Opt Out of Facial Recognition at the Airport

It seems like a near-daily occurrence to hear unsettling stories about international travelers facing denial of entry at U.S. airports. In April, a few German tourists were turned away at Honolulu’s airport and sent back to Europe after U.S. immigration officials said they couldn’t confirm hotel arrangements. New Zealand’s government has revised its U.S. travel advisory after at least eight of its citizens were detained or denied entry over visa-related issues over the last several months. And in March, a French scientist who was traveling to Houston for a research conference was denied entry after border agents reportedly found text messages on his phone that criticized former President Donald Trump. (U.S. officials later claimed the denial was tied to unauthorized scientific data.) 

So yes, it’s fair to feel anxious about traveling right now. But one way to take back some control is by knowing your rights. And that begins by understanding when you can say “no” to facial recognition scans at airports.

If you’ve traveled through any major U.S. airport over the last few years, you’ve likely noticed the addition of facial recognition cameras at TSA checkpoints. According to the agency, it introduced facial recognition technology into the screening process at select airports as a “security enhancement” and to improve “traveler convenience.” According to the TSA, these scanners are already stationed in more than 80 airports nationwide and will “expand to more than 400 federalized airports over the coming years.” 

Here’s how it works: when you approach the podium, a camera will snap an image of your face, which is then used to match it to the photo embedded in the chip of your passport in real time. As long as it successfully matches, you can go right through.

“A traveler may voluntarily agree to use their face to verify their identity during the screening process by presenting their physical identification or passport,” the TSA explained. “The facial recognition technology TSA uses helps ensure the person standing at the checkpoint is the same person pictured on the identification document (ID) credential.”

While the TSA noted that the “photos are not stored or saved after a positive ID match has been made,” it does add “except in a limited testing environment for evaluation of the effectiveness of the technology.” 

But the key word in all of this is “voluntarily.” You do not have to scan your face at all if you do not want to. It’s right there on the TSA’s website, which states, “Travelers who do not wish to participate in the facial recognition technology process may decline the optional photo, without recourse, in favor of an alternative identity verification process, which does not use facial recognition technology to verify their identity.” It also noted that using an alternative method does not take longer and “travelers will not lose their place in line for security screening.” 

There are also signs posted around the airport attesting to this “voluntary” rule, but they are often hidden in plain sight and easy to miss. And while it may not seem like a huge deal, many privacy experts and government officials say it’s a better idea to opt out and simply get verified by a desk agent instead. 

In 2023, Sens. John Kennedy (R-La.) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) introduced a bipartisan bill that aimed to prohibit the use of facial recognition screening at airports, with Merkley stating at the time, “The TSA program is a precursor to a full-blown national surveillance state. Nothing could be more damaging to our national values of privacy and freedom. No government should be trusted with this power.” (Again, the TSA notes on its website: “Biometrics are not used for surveillance–Facial recognition technology is solely used to automate the current manual ID credential checking process and will not be used for surveillance or any law enforcement purpose.”)

The Electronic Privacy Information Center wrote in an analysis in 2023 that facial recognition is “an invasive and dangerous surveillance technology.” It added, “There is a reason facial recognition has become ubiquitous in less democratic countries—facial recognition is an ideal tool for oppression by an authoritarian or would-be authoritarian government. TSA’s use of facial recognition normalizes the use of our face as our ID, and the dangerous implications are far too great to ignore. The TSA should immediately halt its implementation of facial recognition.” 

Another reason to take a pause? Accuracy. A 2019 study by the National Institute of Standards and Technology showed that facial recognition algorithms can misidentify people, especially in certain demographics. As it noted in the study it saw “higher rates of false positives for Asian and African American faces” relative to the images of white faces.

So, if you don’t want to take part in it, you don’t have to. All you need to do is tell the TSA officer you do not consent to the scan and would like to have your ID manually verified. Then, you can get on your way.