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.”
After President Trump issued a thread of xenophobic tweets calling on four Congresswomen of color to "go back" to where they came from, he defended his comments again on Twitter and in remarks to reporters at the White House.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Monday, July 15, 2019.
New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is "cautiously optimistic" that the September 11th Victim's Compensation Fund's permanent extension will be passed in the Senate.
President Donald Trump Thursday evening decided to share his negative opinions on cryptocurrencies and Facebook's plans for the Libra currency, drawing a backlash among blockchain proponents.
Mississippi Rep. Robert Foster, currently running for governor of the state, is denying a female reporter from his campaign trip — unless she is accompanied by a male colleague. That Mississippi Today reporter Larrison Campbell joined Cheddar to give her reaction.
Nike announced on Thursday that it is moving forward with its plan to open a Nike Air Manufacturing Innovation facility in Goodyear, Arizona, just a week after the Governor Doug Ducey said the company was not welcome.
On Friday morning, President Donald Trump announced that Labor Secretary Alex Acosta resigned from his position. The decision follows widespread outrage over Acosta's handling of a 2008 case involving hedge fund manager Jeffrey Epstein, who had been accused of being a sexual predator.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Friday, July 12, 2019.
President Donald Trump abandoned his administration's years-long pursuit to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census, but through an executive order demanded that all government agencies compile and disclose existing data on citizenship.
According to the 16-page report obtained by Cheddar, the expected price tag of the Victim's Compensation Fund is expected to be more than $10 billion over the next 10 years.
