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JetBlue Testing Facial-Recognition Boarding in Boston

Starting this month, it will be possible to use your face as a boarding pass at Logan International Airport in Boston.

JetBlue Airways is testing a facial-recognition system on its Boston-Aruba route, making it the first airline to try out the futuristic technology—a sci-fi staple—in real life.

Here's how it will work for passengers:

Instead of checking in with a boarding pass, you'll have the option to be photographed at the gate. That image will be checked against passport and visa files kept by Customs and Border Patrol. If the images match, you'll be allowed to board—without showing a ticket or an ID.

JetBlue officials say the Boston test, which begins June 12, could be the first step toward introducing facial-recognition technology throughout every airport system, from security checkpoints to baggage claim.

Which sounds cool and all, but what are you supposed to do when a homicidal Nicolas Cage steals your likeness, a la the 1997 thriller Face/Off?

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