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Germany Tests Facial Recognition Technology at Rail Station

by Associated Press

   BERLIN --

   German authorities have launched a six-month test of automatic facial
   recognition technology at a Berlin railway station, which the country's
   top security official says could be used to improve security in the
   future.

   More than 200 people volunteered to have their names and two photos
   stored for the project at Suedkreuz station, where three cameras film
   an entrance and an escalator.

   Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said in a statement Tuesday
   "technical progress must not stop at our security services."

   But Germans generally back strong data protection. Ulrich Schellenberg,
   head of the German Bar Association, said "not everything that is
   technically possible is something we want to do as a society."

   It's not clear how officials will proceed after the test.