The IRS is dropping its third-party facial recognition system used to verify taxpayers. Privacy and civil rights advocates and lawmakers from both major parties have objected to the system. Via arstechnica
The Democrats illustrated the risk by pointing to a 2019 "cyberattack on a US Customs and Border Protection subcontractor [that] exposed the face images and license plates of thousands of US travelers.
We are also concerned about the lack of transparency in both the IRS's contract with ID.me and ID.me itself. The company had repeatedly stated, including in a press release just weeks ago, that ID.me does not use one-to-many face recognition, which compares a facial image to a mass database of other facial images and is more privacy invasive and prone to error. Yet, in the same month, ID.
Rettig yesterday said, "The IRS takes taxpayer privacy and security seriously, and we understand the concerns that have been raised. 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 IRS said the change announced Monday "does not interfere with the taxpayer's ability to file their return or pay taxes owed. During this period, the IRS will continue to accept tax filings, and it has no other impact on the current tax season. People should continue to file their taxes as they normally would."that it "is committed to not deploying facial recognition...
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