For many years, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have asked states to use their own face (or facial) recognition systems to search photos in their department of motor vehicles (DMV) databases. This use of DMV photos for law enforcement and immigration enforcement purposes is part of a larger context in which local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies, including ICE, have long relied on driver’s license databases to obtain information about drivers and car owners, including their addresses.
This resource provides information about ICE’s use of DMV photos and states’ face-recognition technology as well as some steps that states can take to restrict access to photos in their DMV databases and to limit how photos can be used.
*For footnotes and bibliography, please reference the PDF version of this resource below.
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