Legal Implications of the Use of Biometrics as a Tool to Fight the Global War on Terrorism

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Since the fall of the Soviet Union and the emergence of the United States (US) as the single world superpower, the focus of the Army has shifted its threat paradigm from a focus on the Communist threat to that of multiple threats from both nation states and non-state actors. The terrorist attacks against the United States Homeland on September 11, 2001 highlighted the need for the country's leadership to develop effective means of identifying personnel as a part of a national security plan. National security agents identified many of the perpetrators of the 9/11 attacks as posing a threat to the US, however, their failure to apprehend the suspects led to the terrorist attacks. If the country employed biometric technologies in the airports prior to the attacks, it is likely that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) would have identified and detained the suspects, thwarting their plan to terrorize innocent citizens. A biometric identification system would certainly present law enforcement officials with a powerful tool for the identification of known or suspected terrorists and other criminals, however, the system must adhere to the laws designed to protect the individual privacy of US citizens while providing an effective means of identifying known and suspected criminals. To develop such a program, system designers would have to ensure that the program adheres to the Fourth, Fifth, and Fourteen Amendments of the US Constitution while providing consideration for the Privacy Act and the Patriot Act.