Attorney General sides against Vermont DMV's facial recognition program
Elizabeth MurrayThe Vermont Attorney General's Office has concluded that a facial recognition program used by the state's Department of Motor Vehicles does not fully comply with Vermont law.
Attorney General T.J. Donovan says the program should remain suspended until the Vermont Legislature reviews the program and provides the DMV with authorization to use the program, a news release sent Tuesday states.
Donovan's conclusions come almost two months after Gov. Phil Scott asked the DMV to stop using the technology pending review by Donovan's office. The issue came to light after the American Civil Liberties Union in Vermont wrote a letter to the DMV outlining concerns about the program, which uses facial recognition technology to scan the DMV database of more than 700,000 individuals.
"This is about balancing public safety with the privacy rights of Vermonters," Donovan said. "We stand ready to work collaboratively with the Legislature, the Governor, and all stakeholders to address these critical, complex issues during the next legislative session."
Donovan said the program does not comply with Act 154, which requires the DMV to issue photo IDs but also prohibits the DMV from using biometric technology a part of that process, except as might be required by federal transportation laws relating to commercial drivers' licenses. Federal law also does not require Vermont to use biometric technology to remain compliant with the anti-fraud requirements of the REALID act from 2005.
Ethan Latour, a spokesman for Gov. Phil Scott's office, wrote in an email that the governor will keep the facial recognition program suspended "until the Administration, AG’s Office and the legislature can agree on a solution or clarification of the law that addresses the concerns raised and balances peoples’ right to privacy with the public safety initiative."
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The ACLU has said the facial recognition program "compromises the privacy and security of thousands of Vermonters."
DMV Commissioner Robert Ide said the technology was primarily used to discover identity fraud more quickly than other methods and that the agency was led to believe it was using the technology legally. Ide said that while identity fraud occurs infrequently, the current suspension could make the DMV less efficient in detecting when it does happen.
"We certainly were not surprised by T.J.'s endorsement of the Governor's decision to suspend," Ide said Tuesday. "Biometrics is an emerging landscape across the country. Different jurisdictions are having conversations about this. We have other tools that we use to detect fraud, so we've reverted to those tools."
The ACLU's letter showed the DMV additionally used the software to process requests by federal, state and local law enforcement agencies from around the country to analyze photographs and video images and see if the images match any faces in the DMV's database. The DMV then would hand over Vermonters' ID photos and "any associated information stored with the photo" to the requesting agency if there is a match.
Ide has said 126 requests from law enforcement have been fulfilled over the five years the program has been used.
Jay Diaz, a lawyer for the ACLU-Vermont, said Tuesday he was pleased with Donovan's announcement and that he hopes the program will be dismantled permanently.
“We are glad the Attorney General values Vermonters’ privacy and agrees that DMV’s facial recognition program is patently illegal," Diaz wrote in a statement. "Forcing Vermonters to give up the equivalent of a fingerprint in exchange for the ability to drive, and sending their photos and personal information to agencies around the country, is unlawful and ineffective.”
Diaz said in a phone conversation Tuesday that among the program's downfalls are that it invades Vermonters' privacy and "lacks any due process protections to prevent abuse."
Ide said his office is proceeding under Attorney General Donovan's recommendation. However, he said he hopes to continue to work with the Attorney General's Office, Gov. Phil Scott's Office and the legislature to "try to craft language that would allow us to reopen the use of the product in a very limited capacity, which is exactly how we were using it before."
Contact Elizabeth Murray at 651-4835 or emurray@freepressmedia.com. Follow her on Twitter at @LizMurrayBFP.