By Adam Robbins

Chinese authorities will soon make your trip back to Shenzhen a little smoother, South China Morning Post reports, with the installation of facial recognition cameras at border crossings. 

Though all the Shenzhen/Hong Kong border crossings are equipped with e-channels – which speed things along by scanning thumb prints, faces and travel documents – users currently must scan their documents a second time to clear customs. Facial recognition, now reported to be in a trial phase at the Lo Wu and Shenzhen Bay checkpoints, will eliminate that step once the system is fully operational. 

READ MORE: New HK-Shenzhen Border Crossing to Open This Year

SCMP translates a Weibo statement by China’s General Administration of Customs as saying, “Passengers shuttling between Shenzhen and Hong Kong can now just walk through the gates after their travel documents have been verified, as the new facial recognition system will automatically capture their faces.”

Besides speeding the border-crossing for travelers, the technology is touted as a way to crack down on “parallel traders” – people who buy goods tax-free in Hong Kong then resell them on the mainland. Instead of comparing travelers’ ID cards to a list of suspected traders, the facial recognition cameras will identify suspects in the crowd and alert customs officers to intervene.

READ MORE: Facial Recognition Now Used to Bust Cyclists, Drivers in SZ

So we’ll save a bit of time when slogging back from a weekend in Hong Kong... at the expense of fewer Marks & Spencer goodies on Taobao. So it goes. 

[Cover image via SSDPenguin/Wikipedia]

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