Biometric Surveillance and the Right to Privacy [Commentary]

Using biometric technology to identify and monitor people raises human rights concerns. In particular, biometrics are often associated with intrusions into privacy. The personal and permanent nature of the physiological features that are analyzed by a biometric system raising an inherent tension with privacy interests. When biometrics are applied in a surveillance context, concerns for privacy naturally increase. To consider the compatibility of biometric surveillance with international human rights obligations, we start with a general overview of biometric technologies that are, or may be, employed in surveillance.