Northrop Grumman To Develop Biometric Identification Technology For US Government
In what appears to be iconic of the dystopian nightmares of those labeled "conspiracy theorists", one of the largest cogs in the military industrial complex machine has announced that it will begin developing biometric identification projects for the benefit of the Department of Homeland Security.
The move seeks a "...more robust and secure recognition system that supports DHS and its mission partners." According to the report published by Northrop Grumman themselves, "Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) has been awarded a $95 million contract by the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Office of Biometric Identity Management (OBIM) to develop increments one and two of the Homeland Advanced Recognition Technology (HART) system". Northrop Grumman announces that it will also be the system's "developer and integrator". This 42-month program will implement "multi-modal processing and matching technology that uses a combination of face, finger and iris biometrics meeting DHS accuracy requirements". It claims that it will become "the nation's largest biometric system". I contacted the Department of Homeland Security, who declined to comment on whether these recognition systems would be used to tap into the cameras of cell phones and laptops for desired information, to which they declined to respond.
