John F. Kennedy International Airport has become the
first airport in the United States to use iris scanning technology to
prevent employee security breaches. Kennedy has been testing the technology
on about 300 employees working at Terminal 4 for two months, although
the program is not mandatory for now. The idea is that the technology
prevents employees from giving their ID cards to someone else. The scanner
stores 247 traits of a person's iris into a computer and on his or
her ID card's magnetic strip.

Terminal officials said they believe the technique is
more specific than fingerprinting, which checks for 85 traits. The $2,000
iris scanner and the $15,000 door barring entry into a secure area have
been installed at the customs area leading to the tarmac. If the scanner
fails to match an employee's eyes and card, an alarm sounds and security
guards are dispatched. After swiping their cards, workers peer into the
scanner for 10 to 15 seconds, until the door clicks open. The system works
with contact lenses and eyeglasses, but not with sunglasses. The Charlotte,
North Carolina, airport used similar technology in 2000, but suspended
the system last year.