CBP to install facial recognition technology at Calexico Port of Entry
CALEXICO, Calif. (KYMA) - Crossing the border could soon look a little different in imperial county thanks to some new technology.
A high-tech upgrade is coming to the Calexico Port of Entry as U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) expands the use of biometric technology to identify people crossing the border.
CBP says facial recognition helps confirm that travelers are the rightful owners of their documents.
Nationwide, more than 800 million travelers have already been processed using the system.
One resident, Juan Ramon, hopes this will help speed up the crowds.
"In the morning, it's hard because all the people coming, the students. It's too much people. Around around, people coming into the morning. 6 o'clock, 8 o'clock it's too much people," Ramon explained.
These changes come as the West Port of entry is being rebuilt with a permanent structure expected to be completed in 2029.
The Calexico Police Department (CPD) said the new construction brought new crime, although that jas been addressed with more patrol units.
"Actually we've seen a little bit of increases as the construction companies have arrived," said Det. Jose Cuellar with CPD.
"At the beginning they were breaking into the construction site and stealing tools and stuff like that, but once they let us know that that was happening, extra patrols were conducted and that has dropped," he explained.
The construction and installation on the new technology begins Monday night with crews working in the evening to cut down on traffic delays.
Detective Cuellar said traffic from the current construction has not affected the flow of traffic, except when it comes to parking downtown.
As for the data and what happens to it, CBP says the photo is generally deleted after a person's identity has been confirmed, but may be stored longer than 12 hours, depending on the person's status.
The biometric technology is already being used at several airports, land borders, and seaports across America
As the technology expands, data and privacy remain a major part of the conversation.
