LAX tests biometric facial recognition system as boarding pass

LOS ANGELES, Calif. (FOX 11) - Your face is now your boarding pass under a new system being tested out at LAX that uses biometric facial recognition technology at a flight's gate.

It's part of a partnership between LAX, CBP, and British Airways, and they all believe this technology will speed things up, and offer more security.

The technology was demonstrated and tested out on passengers boarding a flight to London at LAX Thursday night.

"This is cool for us because this is technology that's gonna increase security, advance the passenger experience, everybody is gonna be happy," said Fred Fischer, senior director of VisionBox, the company that designed the technology. "Every face is different so from a biometric match we look from point to point on your face and no two are identical, worldwide, you can't spoof the system with a mask or a photo or anything like that this is 100% secure."

The facial scans are compared to photos already in CBP's possession, typically passport photos for Americans.

Fischer said all of the data their technology connects is stored with CBP and is never distributed to a third party.

CBP said the system is 97.5% accurate, and they hope to have the technology implemented at airports all around the country within 4 years.