A large number of Americans are using unsanctioned IDs to pass through airport security and board flights, according to survey of 1,000 Americans conducted by Wakefield Research for Acuant, a global provider of identity verification solutions.
Despite current security measures, 60 percent of Americans who have ever been to an airport report they have boarded a plane without proper identification. More than half (51 percent) passed through security using some form of ID that doesn't include a picture at all.
The survey found that Americans are ready to fully embrace biometric security screening at the airport as a positive solution to the issue of identity. Biometric technologies use body and behavior to confirm identity and include fingerprint scans, retina scans or facial recognition. In fact, 84 percent of Americans feel that biometrics will improve travelers' airport experience. Nearly 3 out of 5 (59 percent) believe that biometrics will increase safety because of improved identification accuracy. More than half (56 percent) believe it would improve speed and efficiency in security lines.
"Americans are busier than ever and clearly ready for new solutions to address the long lines and often tedious airport boarding experience," said Yossi Zekri, President and CEO of Acuant. "Airports around the world are adopting biometrics, such as facial recognition tied to a valid government issued document, secure ID tokens and other technologies to improve the travel experience while increasing safety. It is time for U.S. airports to evolve into the 21stcentury and make flying frictionless, fast and fun again."