Regulation of Biometric Identification in Public Spaces

Authors

  • Jason L. Ferguson UC Berkeley School of Law (current affiliation) Author
  • Jonathan A. Chu Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, NUS (current affiliation) Author

Keywords:

biometrics, public space, surveillance, privacy, regulation

Abstract

Background: Questions surrounding biometrics are administrative as well as legal because institutional practice can influence public space, consistency, and accountability.

Objective: Our objective was to determine how institutional arrangements concerning biometrics influenced implementation consistency and outcomes related to public space.

Methods: Across 7 jurisdictions or institutional settings, legal and policy sources were combined with organizational evidence and, when available, key-informant material. Comparative coding focused on authority, coordination, transparency, safeguards, enforcement, and implementation capacity.

Results: Comparative coding revealed three dominant patterns of biometrics implementation. Explicit mandates, coordination arrangements, and accessible review mechanisms characterized the higher-performing cases and were associated with a 8% increase in the composite score. Fragmented responsibility was associated with both delay and inconsistent enforcement.

Conclusion: Implementation conditions appear decisive for the effectiveness of policy relating to biometrics. Accordingly, effective information governance depends on turning formal data or records obligations into routine, auditable administrative practice.

Study design: comparative legal-implementation study.

Publication history: Originally published in print on 15 June 2024, Volume 4, Article 17. Online abstract record added on 16 September 2026. Full-text PDF will be added when the digital galley is ready.

Author Biographies

  • Jason L. Ferguson, UC Berkeley School of Law (current affiliation)

    Current designation: Assistant Professor of Law.

    Current affiliation: UC Berkeley School of Law, United States.

    Current author information supplied for the 2026 digital archive.

  • Jonathan A. Chu, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, NUS (current affiliation)

    Current designation: Associate Professor.

    Current affiliation: Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, NUS, Singapore.

    Current author information supplied for the 2026 digital archive.

Issue 4

Published

2024-06-15

Issue

Vol. 4 (2024)

Section

Articles

License

Copyright (c) 2024 Jason L. Ferguson, Jonathan A. Chu

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Authors retain copyright. Unless a different rights statement appears on an individual item, new articles are published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence (CC BY 4.0). Reuse, sharing and adaptation, including for commercial purposes, are permitted with appropriate attribution, a link to the licence and an indication of changes. No additional restrictions may be imposed. Third-party material and historical archive items may have different rights; consult the item-specific notice.