JFK terminal first in nation to use eye-scan technology on employees NEW YORK (AP) =97 New York's JFK International Airport has become the first= =20 airport in the nation to use iris scanning technology to prevent employee=20 security breaches. Kennedy has been testing the technology on about 300=20 employees working at Terminal 4 for two months, although the program is not= =20 mandatory for now. John DeFelice, the international terminal's security=20 director, said the technology prevents employees from giving their ID cards= =20 to someone else. "I can give my card, but I can't give my eyes to anyone,"= =20 he said. DeFelice said he expects the Transportation Security=20 Administration, which oversees the nation's travel systems, to require some= =20 sort of biometric screening for the terminal's 1,500 employees within the=20 year. A TSA spokeswoman didn't immediately return a telephone call Thursday. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates Kennedy,=20 LaGuardia and Newark (N.J.) Liberty airports, is testing different employee= =20 security systems but hasn't made a decision on iris scanning. The $2,000=20 iris scanner and the $15,000 door barring entry into a secure area have=20 been installed at the customs area leading to the tarmac. The scanner=20 stores 247 traits of a person's iris into a computer and on his or her ID=20 card's magnetic strip. Terminal officials said they believe the technique=20 is more specific than fingerprinting, which checks for 85 traits. After=20 swiping their cards, workers peer into the scanner for 10 to 15 seconds,=20 until the door clicks open. The system works with contact lenses and=20 eyeglasses, but not with sunglasses. If the scanner fails to match an=20 employee's eyes and card, an alarm sounds and security guards are=20 dispatched, DeFelice said. The Charlotte, N.C., airport used similar=20 technology in 2000, but suspended the system last year. The owner of Roger's Trinbago Site: Roj (Roger James) *************************************************** escape email mailto:ejames@escape.ca Trinbago site: http://www.tntisland.com CBC Website http://www.tntisland.com/caribbeanbrassconnection/ The Trinbago Site of the Week: (chgdev) http://www.chagdev.com/ (Chaguaramas Development Authority) courtesy of Roj Trinbago Website & TnT Web Directory Roj's Trinbago Website: http://www.tntisland.com TnT Web Directory: http://search.co.tt *********************************************************