An even faster way through airport security: Here’s what it’s like using touchless ID

Airport security screening of the future is here

Touchless ID is the future of airport security, and it’s already here. It means passengers can speed through bag drop-off, Transportation Security Administration screening and — at many airports — the plane boarding lines, all without showing a boarding pass or even an ID in some cases.

Here’s how biometric security screening works

I’ll use Delta as my example because that’s the airline I have the most experience with. Delta Digital ID is currently available as part of a pilot program at seven U.S. airports: ATL, JFK, LGA, Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW), Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC) and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA).

Select Delta SkyMiles members with TSA PreCheck and a valid U.S. passport are eligible. To enroll, you should see a banner ad in the app.

You’ll need to opt in to the new technology. I received the offer in my Delta Air Lines app when I logged in for a flight because my TSA PreCheck and passport numbers were already in my customer profile and because I was traveling from an airport that was among the first to offer biometric security screening.

Once you’ve opted in, you’ll get a confirmation, as my colleague Yemi Kolawole did.

Once you’ve completed these steps, your future boarding passes should show a tiny green box with a rough outline of a profile to the left of the TSA PreCheck symbol.

Next, you’ll need to keep an eye out for the prominent “Digital ID” badges on signs at bag drop and security lines at participating airports.

Here are some photos of the signage at various airports, including in Chicago, New York City and Atlanta.

I’ve now used touchless ID multiple times at ATL as well as at JFK and LGA in New York City. I’ve found it’s the fastest method of going through security; it puts me in a special lane and dumps me ahead of the crowd every time. I often get priority over TSA PreCheck and Clear members, and I get expedited access to the screening machines. At JFK, for example, the lines for PreCheck and Clear can be quite long in Terminal 4, but there’s never been a line for the Digital ID line when I’ve traveled.

You end up in front of everyone who is in line for Clear or TSA PreCheck screening.

I also noticed the signs are now up in Terminal B at LGA, where I hope American Airlines will soon allow touchless security screening.

I’m thrilled with the spread of biometric screening, and I’m excited to see more airlines roll it out at more airports in the coming years. But of course, not everyone is as happy.

What about privacy concerns with touchless or biometric screening?

The head of the TSA told me that many people are skeptical of touchless screening “because they assume that … at some point we’re going to surveil people with biometrics, which we are not going to do. We have a sole use case. No other use case other than identity verification.”

Pekoske continued by explaining the program’s commitment to privacy. “That’s in our privacy impact statements. It’s in all of our messaging. And if anybody did an investigation of our practices, you’ll see us never using it for a purpose other than identity verification,” he said.

What about racial or ethnic profiling?

There have been concerns over the years that the TSA or the U.S. Department of Homeland Security sometimes racially or ethnically profiles people. Pekoske insisted that is not true, and it is an issue that the government is very sensitive to overall.

“Some people still feel that the technology performs differently for different traveler demographic groups — you know, dark complexion individuals,” he said. However, Pekoske said that has never been the case. “They probably are reading articles from five, six, seven, eight years ago that there was differential performance in certain algorithms that we never used.”

Pekoske continued: “We do testing on that all the time. When I say we, it’s not TSA. It’s the Department of Homeland Security. So it’s at an arm’s length from me because I want it that way. I don’t want to be my own tester, and all of the studies we’ve done on this show that there’s no statistically significant difference across demographic groups.”

He said the TSA puts privacy protections first, and also said there is no differential performance across the system.

Bottom line

Ready or not, the age of biometrics is here.

Touchless security screening is already available at several major airline hubs, and it’s on its way to even more. Having used it now over the past year or so, I’ve been thrilled with the speed with which it gets me through security (and customs). I’m looking forward to the tech rolling out to more airports, and I can’t wait until American Airlines begins using it more next year. I’ll be among the first to sign up.

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