By Fatima Hussein
The IRS said Monday it will suspend the use of facial recognition technology to authenticate people who create online accounts after the practice was criticized by privacy advocates and lawmakers.
The agency said it would no longer use a third-party service, called ID.me, for facial recognition. Critics of the software said the database could become a target for cyberthreats. They also expressed concern about how the information could be used by other government agencies, among other concerns.
Earlier Monday, Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden, D-Ore., called on the agency to end its use of the ID.me software. After the IRS announced the practice would be suspended, Wyden said "the Treasury Department has made the smart decision to direct the IRS to transition away from using the controversial ID.me verification service.”
"No one should be forced to submit to facial recognition to access critical government services,” he added.
The IRS is currently grappling with a worker shortage and an expanded workload from processing tax filings and administering pandemic-related programs. Legislation that would have given the agency billions of dollars to more expeditiously process returns is stalled.
“The IRS takes taxpayer privacy and security seriously, and we understand the concerns that have been raised,” said IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig.
“Everyone should feel comfortable with how their personal information is secured, and we are quickly pursuing short-term options that do not involve facial recognition.”
The agency said the transition would occur “over the coming weeks in order to prevent larger disruptions to taxpayers during filing season.”
The Iowa Senator made the characterization to Cheddar after his Republican colleagues Sens. Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Rand Paul (R-Ky.) blasted the president's long-awaited and delayed briefing on the killing.
The officials, citing U.S. intelligence, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive information. They said they had no certain knowledge of Iranian intent. But they said it could very well have been a mistake, and that the airliner was mistaken for a threat.
Britain's royal family scrambled Thursday to contain the fallout from the surprise announcement by Prince Harry and Meghan that they plan “to step back” from royal duties, a shift that ignited media outrage and public unease in the U.K.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Thursday, January 9, 2020.
The law that became a key roadblock to the controversial Keystone XL pipeline extension may be getting an overhaul, to the benefit of the oil and gas industry.
Adult-use cannabis legalization remains a priority for New York, said Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who has put social justice-focused legalization on his 2020 to-do list.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi set a House vote for Thursday on limiting President Donald Trump's ability to take military action against Iran as Democratic criticism of the U.S. killing of a top Iranian general intensified.
Trump said the U.S. will impose new sanctions on Iran in his first public remarks since Iranian missiles hit two military bases in Iraq that house American troops.
Damien Kieran, Twitter’s Global Data Protection Officer, spoke to Cheddar about how his team is ensuring compliance with data protection laws around the world.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Wednesday, January 8, 2020.
