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Show Child Identification (Cont'd) June 10, 2006 How does iris recognition work? Every human iris is unique and unchanging. A quick, harmless digital photograph of a person's eye is taken and compared with a database. Iris scans are highly accurate, with no false matches in more than 2 million comparisons. Where is iris recognition used? It is used in public safety, health care, aviation and education. Jails can scan inmates, making sure no one is released due to mistaken identity. Airports can allow passengers to register their scans to streamline boarding, and hospitals can use scans to regulate who has access to patient information or newborn babies. Source: The CHILD Project CHILD From 1A away and don't know who they are. The sheriff's office will make announcements about opportunities to use the machine, Anderson said. The scans will be provided at no charge. "A lot of senior centers are interested, as well as PTA groups," he said. Sean Mullin, president/CEO of the Phoenix-based CHILD Project, said the system works for people of all ages because of the iris's unique identifying abilities. "The eyes are the body's most unique feature," he said, adding that iris scans are 12 times as accurate as fingerprints alone. The iris is not completely developed until a person is about a year old, Mullin said. After that, it doesn't change and can be easily recognized electronically, even after eye surgery. "The camera can scan people who've had LASIK or are wearing contacts or glasses," he said. "It works with most types of eye disorders." Mullin addressed privacy concerns about the technology, saying enrollment is completely voluntary. Also, in order to be scanned, a person must be within 10 inches of the camera, so no one could be scanned unknowingly. The CHILD Project is growing throughout the country, he said, with Utah being the 20th state to join. Nationwide, 1,648 sheriffs in 46 states have expressed interest in the program, he said. At least 13 other Utah sheriffs have A digital camera is used to photograph the iris of subjects for the CHILD Project Friday. ROBERT JOHNSON Standard-Examiner By the numbers: In the U.S., as of Feb. 1, 2006: 103,949 missing people 62,923 are children 19,689 listed as endangered 7,660 listed as involuntarily missing 1.8 Alzheimer's patients are known to wander expressed interest in the program and are working to obtain the necessary funding, Mullin said. In the meantime, the Weber County Sheriff's Office is willing to share the equipment and will consider requests from other agencies, Anderson said: |