The Rise of Facial Recognition at Security Checkpoints
The Fastest Airport Security Line You Don't Know About

Veteran fliers sing the praises of Touchless ID lanes that use facial recognition

A new program allows travelers to use their faces for identity verification at the security checkpoint-no driver's license required. Situated at nine airports across the country, it's often faster than other lines, and often the shortest.

Travelers flying Delta and United can already use the facial-recognition technology at eligible airports, while those flying American and Alaska should expect to see the option in the coming months, Transportation Security Administration officials say.

While some people express reservations about widespread use of biometrics, travelers on web forums across the internet joke that TSA PreCheck Touchless ID is the veteran flier's best-kept secret.

"The first rule about Touchless PreCheck is you don't talk about Touchless PreCheck," one traveler wrote on Reddit.

Touchless ID allows eligible travelers to get past the security officer in an average of six to eight seconds, compared with 18 to 20 seconds for standard PreCheck screenings, TSA says. The program has read six million faces in its few years of operation.

It's the latest step in the agency's plan to modernize security screening and make it more efficient for travelers as the number of people passing through airports grows. Facial recognition is also starting to surface everywhere from baggage drop to the boarding area.

...The program requires travelers to opt in. TSA PreCheck is already optional. Using the facial-recognition line also requires explicit permission from travelers, says Anne Walbridge, traveler populations branch manager for TSA.

...Delta began using the technology in 2021, before any other U.S. airline. Delta and United travelers at New York's LaGuardia, Los Angeles International and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport can use the lines. Some fliers can also use the checkpoints at Chicago's O'Hare, Newark, Atlanta, Salt Lake City, Detroit and New York's John F. Kennedy.

...Many travelers say that because the verification compares their face to an existing photo, which the government already has, they don't sweat the privacy aspects of the biometric process.

"My general feeling about it always has been that if Uncle Sam wants a picture of me, he can find it pretty easily," says Joel Hart, a 42-year-old college admissions officer from Los Angeles. wsj.com
 

FTC Sinks Merger
Tapestry and Capri terminate merger agreement

After losing a lawsuit against the FTC, both companies agreed to cancel the deal, calling the legal process "uncertain and unlikely to be resolved."

Tapestry and Capri Holdings have terminated their merger agreement, the companies said in separate press releases Thursday. Tapestry said terminating the agreement is in the best interest of both companies, "as the outcome of the legal process is uncertain and unlikely to be resolved" by the February deadline.

Last month, both companies appealed a federal court decision that blocked the deal, after the Federal Trade Commission sued Tapestry for anticompetitive behavior in April.

When Tapestry, the owner of Coach, Kate Spade and Stuart Weitzman, announced its intention to acquire Capri, which owns Michael Kors, Jimmy Choo and Versace, analysts said the $8.5 billion deal would have made Tapestry one of the largest luxury conglomerates in the United States, behind LVMH.

But the FTC took issue with Tapestry's previous acquisition history - it bought Stuart Weitzman in 2015 and Kate Spade in 2017 - and accused the company of having a "goal to become a serial acquirer." The FTC also said the deal would give Tapestry a dominant share of the accessible luxury handbag market, a term coined by Tapestry "to describe quality leather and craftsmanship handbags at an affordable price." retaildive.com


Inflation Is Lower But Will Still Hit Holiday Sales
Holiday sales growth expected to stay below 10-year average

Retailers are likely to lean on discounts to drive sales as consumers continue feeling the pressure of inflation, according to an S&P Global Ratings report.

U.S. holiday sales growth is likely to slow to about 3%, down from 4.7% a year ago, S&P Global Ratings said in a Tuesday report. That's below the 10-year average of 5.3%, the credit rating agency said.

Retailers that rely heavily on discretionary consumer spending face a higher likelihood of a credit rating downgrade within the next 24 months, S&P said. Apparel, accessories and speciality retailers have seen the largest increase in negative ratings in the last 12 months.

S&P said its outlook is based on declining yet persistent inflation that continues to pressure household budgets. The report also cited a late Thanksgiving holiday, which cuts five shopping days from the calendar this year, as an additional contributing factor that may weigh on sales. retaildive.com


More Amazon Fresh Stores Coming
Amazon Fresh expansion continues as chain opens long-awaited stores

The company confirmed the opening of eight stores across five states and will continue to selectively add locations based on consumer response.

Amazon confirmed the opening of eight new Amazon Fresh stores on both the East and West coasts over the past several weeks. The company signed several of these locations' leases years prior but is only now utilizing the spaces, according to local news reports about the locations. Amazon will continue to selectively open Amazon Fresh stores "as we see results we like," company spokesperson Griffin Buch said in an emailed statement. retaildive.com
 

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CISOs in 2025:
Balancing security, compliance, and accountability
In this Help Net Security interview, Daniel Schwalbe, CISO at DomainTools, discusses the intensifying regulatory demands that have reshaped CISO accountability and daily decision-making. He outlines the skill sets future CISOs need, their key priorities for 2025, and how increased pressure impacts the role's attractiveness and retention.

What specific regulatory demands have heightened the CISO's accountability, and how has this affected their daily decision-making?

A recent change in the regulatory landscape that directly affected CISOs employed by publicly traded companies and heightened their accountability was the adoption of new rules by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), covering Cybersecurity Risk Management, Strategy, Governance, and Incident Disclosure by Public Companies. The SEC now mandates that companies disclose material cybersecurity incidents within four business days via financial filings. It must include detailed information about the incident's nature, timing, and impact on the company's financial health.

Additionally the new rules require companies to include cybersecurity risk assessments and management processes in their annual financial disclosures. The new rules also introduced specific personal accountability for CISOs and other members of the C-Suite, with an emphasis on the fact that executives are expected to understand their individual responsibilities for ensuring the accuracy of their company's financial disclosures.

Another regulatory update that affects financial institutions regulated by the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS), which includes any bank or brokerage doing business on Wall Street, increases the personal liability of CISOs. The rule changes require that CISOs, along with the organization's highest-ranking executive, personally certify their organization's compliance with the state's Cybersecurity Regulations on an annual basis.

These changes to regulatory demands will likely affect the daily decision-making of a CISO who works for a company that is subject to the new rules in the following ways: helpnetsecurity.com


'Unacceptable Cybersecurity Risks to the Country'
National cyber director calls for streamlined security regulations

Harry Coker Jr. assured critical infrastructure and private sector stakeholders that while standards are necessary, there is a need to harmonize burdensome compliance demands.

The U.S. must take collective action to address "unacceptable" cybersecurity risks to the country, National Cyber Director Harry Coker Jr. said in a speech at Columbia University's Conference on Cyber Regulation and Harmonization in New York City. Coker called for federal authorities to work together with critical infrastructure providers, private sector companies and other stakeholders.

Cybersecurity threats like the China state-linked Volt Typhoon present unacceptable risks to the U.S., Coker said, and more investments are required to build long term cyber resilience. As part of that strategy, companies need to ensure that cybersecurity is as much of a focus as quarterly profits.

At the same time, Coker called for the government to streamline its regulations and harmonize compliance demands for the benefit of the private sector and critical infrastructure providers. This could allow CISOs and other security leaders to spend more time mitigating their own organizational cyber risk, he said.

Coker's speech highlights a key concern for the Biden administration as it winds down its final months in office and moves into a new phase of implementing its national cybersecurity strategy.

The U.S. is facing a major threat to critical infrastructure - sophisticated state-linked hackers have targeted the telecom industry in recent months - while other industries like energy, water utilities and other sectors face a combination of threats from nation states and criminal ransomware groups. cybersecuritydive.com


'Broad and Significant Cyber Espionage Campaign'
Feds find 'broad and significant' China espionage campaign in US telecom networks

The FBI and CISA warned the nation-state affiliated malicious activities are extensive and include the theft of sensitive call records and court-ordered information.

A string of China-linked attacks on U.S. telecom networks are part of a "broad and significant cyber espionage campaign," federal officials said Wednesday.

The China-affiliated attackers compromised multiple telecommunications networks to steal call records and court-ordered information related to U.S. law enforcement requests.

The widespread compromise included "private communications of a limited number of individuals who are primarily involved in government or political activity," the FBI and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said in a joint statement. cybersecuritydive.com


Cyber professionals face an IP loss reckoning in 2025