Declan McCullagh reports: Two U.S. senators met with President Obama on Thursday to push for a national ID card with biometric information such as a fingerprint, hand scan, or iris scan that all employers would be required to verify. In an opinion article published in Friday’s edition of the Washington Post, Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and…
Category: Laws
N.H. Lawmakers Reject Broad Restrictions On Biometrics
New Hampshire lawmakers on Thursday sided overwhelmingly with the Security Industry Association (SIA) on a crucial biometrics issue. Following an education and advocacy push by SIA, legislators rejected by a 267-39 vote HB 1409, which would have prohibited any government agency or private entity in the state from using biometrics as part of identification cards…
Revised cybersecurity bill introduced in Senate
Jaikumar Vijayan reports: A revised version of a cybersecurity bill first proposed last year was introduced again in the U.S. Senate today, notably without a controversial provision that would have given the President authority to disconnect networks from the Internet during a national emergency. The bill, called the Cybersecurity Act, is sponsored by Senators Jay…
States give inmates access to personal data of others
Peter Eisler reports: Prisons in eight states let convicts work in jobs that give them access to Social Security numbers and other personal information for the public, despite years of warnings that the practice should end, a federal audit finds. Most of the prisoners hold jobs processing public records for federal, state and local governments,…