Alabama offering facial recognition ID for tax refunds

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) – Alabama’s revenue agency is using a new identity protection system to help prevent the theft of tax refunds.

The Alabama Department of Revenue is implementing a program called eID.

It’s an application using facial recognition software to compare cellphone selfies against photos in the state’s driver license database.

The state conducted a pilot program last year, and it’s rolling out the free program to everyone this year.

The Revenue Department says it’s the first in the nation to use such a statewide system.

The program was developed by the Massachusetts-based IDEMIA, which says the system creates a system to ensure that only the correct taxpayer can claim a refund.

The Alabama eID app is available for download in Apple’s App Store and in the Google Play store for Android users.

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