ID scan helps border agents read passports

Machine can read passport info up to 50 feet away

By Mimi Hall
USA Today

U.S. agents along the Canadian and Mexican borders are using a controversial new machine that can "read" the personal information contained in some government-issued ID cards -- such as passports and driver's licenses -- as travelers approach a checkpoint.

The Homeland Security Department says the new practice will tighten security and speed the flow of traffic. Privacy advocates say the technology could make Americans less secure because terrorists or other criminals may be able to steal the personal information off the ID cards remotely.