The Challenges Of Biometric Data In The Field Of Security: A Comparative Perspective

Biometric data are a powerful tool in the prevention, investigation and prosecution of serious crime such as terrorism. In the most recent years, the breakthroughs in the field of artificial intelligence have led law enforcement authorities of several Western democratic countries to test advanced systems grounded on real-time biometric identification, often deployed in secrecy and without any legal basis. The recent enactment of Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 brought some changes insofar as it laid down some legal rules on biometric identification in law enforcement activities. The present chapter aims to assess whether this new EU framework may guarantee a fair balance between the essential need to safeguard security and the crucial necessity to respect individual rights – such as privacy and data protection – and basic principles – such as the presumption of innocence – which may easily be infringed when biometric surveillance is carried out. A comparative analysis is provided as well, taking the US scenario as a main comparator, in order to highlight the differences in the approaches of two major Western actors, Europe and the United States. In its conclusion, this chapter considers the emerging picture, giving an assessment of its implications for global security.