Rep. Adriano Espaillat Pushes Efforts to Curb Unchecked DHS Facial Recognition Surveillance
(Harlem World Magazine, Jan 22, 2026)
The bill was introduced by Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), who represents Harlem and chairs the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, along with Rep. Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), the ranking member of the House Committee on Homeland Security. The legislation focuses on a smartphone application used by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) known as Mobile Fortify. The app allows ICE officers to take photos of people’s faces or scan fingerprints using a phone to help identify them.
Biometrics are Now a ‘Bedrock’ of Traveler Identification, CBP Official Says
(NextGov, Jan 22, 2026)
Tim Ahrens, the artificial intelligence and automation team lead at the State Department’s Bureau of Diplomatic Technology, said the agency is less focused on a specific verification approach and more on “making the data that is necessary for all of our interagency partners to advance — whether it's biometric scanning, whether it is more of a digital experience — of making that data available in real time.”
More Calls for Surrey Police to Stop Using AI Facial Recognition Tech Over Fears it Shows Ethnic Bias
(Surrey Live, Jan 22, 2026)
The Home Office has said will act on the findings and that a "new algorithm has been procured and independently tested, which can be used at settings with no significant demographic variation in performance.
Sainsbury’s Makes Major Change to MORE Checkouts Across UK in Crackdown
(The Sun, Jan 22, 2026)
Sainsbury’s worked alongside facial recognition company Facewatch in trialling the technology to increase colleague and customer safety, following a rise in retail crime.
Kenya Announces Deletion of Biometric Data Collected by Worldcoin After Court Order
(Tuko, Jan 22, 2026)
Kenya's Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC) has confirmed that the Tools For Humanity (TFH), the US and German-based technology corporation responsible for the Worldcoin cryptocurrency project, has erased all of the information it had gathered from Kenyans in 2023.
