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The Secret Service is testing a mobile app called Sentry that can scan faces and fingerprints and compare them with government databases, raising both security and civil liberties questions.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
The U.S. Secret Service is testing a mobile identification tool that allows agents to scan faces and fingerprints with a smartphone as the agency reports a sharp rise in potential threats.
The app, called Sentry, uses artificial intelligence to compare images captured by agents against large government databases, Bloomberg reported. An agency official familiar with the technology described the system on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the program.
According to the report, agents can use a phone camera to scan a person’s face or fingerprints. The app then checks the images against government records to help identify individuals.
Secret Service Deputy Director Matthew Quinn told Bloomberg that the agency has seen a 40% increase in threat investigations compared with the same period last year. He said agents have also intervened nearly 10 times as often in situations involving people believed to be experiencing mental health episodes.
Quinn said the trends show why law enforcement agencies are looking to new tools for threat assessment.
“These trends underscore the need for law enforcement at all levels to adopt responsible, forward-looking approaches that leverage emerging technologies and modern threat assessment capabilities to identify and mitigate risks before they escalate,” Quinn said in an email.
“At the same time, these efforts must be balanced with a commitment to protecting privacy, civil liberties, and information security,” he added.
The official who spoke with Bloomberg said Secret Service personnel are generally required to seek a person’s consent before using the app.
The testing is currently limited. According to the report, 25 agents equipped with Sentry wear uniforms and primarily protect government buildings, including the White House and foreign embassies.
The app has already drawn concern from privacy advocates. Nathan Freed Wessler, deputy director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s speech, privacy and technology project, told Bloomberg that there are concerns “about how far this is going to go.”
“This is a stunning power, and a power that lends itself to a kind of checkpoint society that we purport to abhor here in the U.S.,” Wessler said.
The Secret Service testing comes as other parts of the Department of Homeland Security have disclosed similar technology. In January, DHS posted online that it had been using a facial recognition app called Mobile Fortify. The department said that system uses “trusted source photos” to compare facial scans taken by agents in order to verify identity.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection said Mobile Fortify is made by NEC and uses facial comparison or fingerprint-matching systems. The app was already in use by CBP and ICE before the immigration crackdown in the Los Angeles area in June, when 404Media first reported its existence.
The Secret Service program places another federal law enforcement agency inside a growing debate over biometric tools, public safety and privacy. Supporters say technologies such as Sentry may help agents identify threats before they escalate. Critics warn that mobile face-scanning systems could expand government surveillance if not tightly limited and monitored.
For now, the agency is testing Sentry with a small number of uniformed agents while officials say the need for faster threat detection must be balanced against privacy, civil liberties and information security.