Security breach caused by new biometric technology at Manchester Airport

Add to My Stories Questions have once again been raised about airport security after two passengers managed to pass through facial recognition scanners using the wrong passports.The scanners, which have been on trial at Manchester since 2008, use facial recognition to compare a passenger with their passport photo, eliminating the need for staff at passport control.However, the UK Border Agency was forced to temporarily suspend the use of the machines after a couple accidentally mixed up their passports, but still managed to pass through the scanners without problem.

Failures: The new biometric reader has been beset by problemsLuckily, due to the scanners being part of a trial, a security official was manning the gates and noticed the error.
However, if the technology is approved, there will not necessarily be staff monitoring the machines as they are supposed to be self-service.It is not the first time the new biometric readers have been plagued by problems.Just last a year a Border Agency whistleblower told the Telegraph that relying on the technology rather than well-trained staff would weaken our borders.He claimed a scanner being used at Stansted Airport could not read Dutch or Lithuanian passports and said a man managed to pass through the gates at Manchester using his sister's passport.After the latest incident, the use of the scanners was suspended for an investigation, but they have since been reintroduced.

More...

• William and Kate to visit Canada on their first official tour as newlyweds
• Half-term holiday rip off: Prices soar as operators punish parents
• Sign off: Iconic Sanyo advert axed as Piccadilly Circus moves with the times

Brodie Clark, head of border force for the Border Agency confirmed the error but said 'there was no breach of security or immigration control'.The so-called E-Gates work with biometric passports ! which we re introduced in 2006. They work by reading biometric and biographical data stored in a chip within the passport itself.The gates are expected to cut queuing time at passport control, but issues have been raised after a Border Agency inspector found one set of gates which failed to work properly five times in the space of a week.The new technology is currently also being trialled at London, Cardiff and East Midlands airports.Mr Clark confirmed the gates had now reopened and said: 'We will continue to monitor their performance to ensure they operate safely and securely.
'To date more than 3 million people have used the E-Gates system.'