Democracy Dies in Darkness

IRS abandons facial recognition plan after firestorm of criticism

The agency had planned to require taxpayers send video scans of their face to a private company starting this summer

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The IRS sys it will stop using facial recognition technology to authenticate people who create online accounts after the practice came under criticism from privacy advocates and lawmakers. (Susan Walsh/AP)
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The Internal Revenue Service has abandoned its plan to require millions of Americans to submit to a facial recognition check through a private company to access their online tax accounts following a firestorm of criticism from privacy advocates and members of Congress.