Transportation
Lufthansa airlines to offer biometric identity verification for passengers
November 18, 2020
Lufthansa Group airlines, Lufthansa and SWISS will be the first to use the Star Alliance biometric identity platform for selected flights starting in November. Specific infrastructure is being installed at hub airports Frankfurt and Munich, according to a press release.
Members of the Lufthansa and SWISS Miles & More Frequent Flyer Program who opt-in to biometrics can pass through both security access and boarding gates in a touchless manner, an important health and hygiene safety measure in times of COVID-19.
The identification process works for passengers wearing masks.
The Star Alliance Biometrics service is built upon NEC Corp.'s NEC I:Delight biometric and identity management platform software. The service is available at no cost to customers of the Miles & More program who have consented to share their biometric data with stakeholders of their choice during travel. Miles & More customers will have the option to enroll in the platform, accessed via a link within the Lufthansa app. Customers enrolling are asked to take a selfie, verify their identity with their passport and opt-in to the airlines and airports where they want to use the service.
Personal data, such as photo and other identification details, are encrypted and stored within the platform. From the outset, the system has been designed in compliance with applicable data protection laws making use of the latest facial recognition technology. Storage of personal data is kept to a minimum — for example, no customer names are stored.
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