FBI Wants Palm Prints, Eye Scans, Tattoo Mapping

CLARKSBURG, West Virginia (CNN) -- The FBI is gearing up to create a massive computer database of people's physical characteristics, all part of an effort the bureau says to better identify criminals and terrorists. But it's an issue that raises major privacy concerns -- what one civil liberties expert says should concern all Americans. The bureau is expected to announce in coming days the awarding of a $1 billion, 10 year contract to help create the database that will compile an array of biometric information -- from palm prints to eye scans.

Given the recent request for a $3 trillion budget, $1 billion doesn’t seem like all that much anymore.