Sweden’s privacy watchdog rejects facial-biometric register plan

Sweden’s privacy regulator has rejected plans to store facial biometric data in a passport and identity-card register, saying the government has not adequately justified a system that could cover almost the entire population.

In its consultation response, dated Thursday, the Swedish Authority for Privacy Protection, IMY, says people who need a passport or identity card would have no way to refuse that storage.

The Justice Ministry’s June proposal would introduce a new state identity card and a data law governing passports and ID cards. Its stated aims include preventing identity misuse and fraud. The proposed starting date is September 2029.

IMY supports a new data law but says the proposal does not establish the scale of identity misuse when people apply for documents. It also calls for examination of whether fingerprints could provide a less intrusive alternative.

The regulator does not rule out a properly justified facial-biometric system. It says a measure this far-reaching needs a more thorough investigation of necessity and proportionality.

The objection is part of an ongoing consultation, not a decision to stop the legislation. It does not change current passport or ID application requirements.

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