Upgraded Biometric Technology Facilitates Visitors' Entry to the United States

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced today that upgraded biometric technology is in place at major U.S. ports of entry, and most international visitors should expect to use the new technology when they enter the United States. DHS's US-VISIT program began upgrading its biometric technology from a two- to a 10-fingerprint collection standard in 2007 to make the entry process faster and more accurate, enabling DHS officials to focus their attention on people who may pose a risk to the United States, those officials say.

"Since 2004, biometrics have facilitated legitimate travel for millions of visitors entering the United States," says US-VISIT Director Robert Mocny. "The 10-fingerprint upgrade makes this proven system even more efficient and enhances the security of our nation."

For the last five years, U.S. Department of State consular officers and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers have collected biometric information -- digital fingerprints and a photograph -- from all non-U.S. citizens between the ages of 14 and 79, with some exceptions, when they apply for visas or arrive at major U.S. ports of entry. State consular officers began collecting 10 fingerprints from visa applicants in 2007.

Collecting 10 fingerprints increases fingerprint matching accuracy and reduces the possibility that the system will misidentify an international visitor, DHS says. It also strengthens DHS's capability to check visitors' fingerprints against the FBI's criminal data and enables DHS to check visitors' fingerprints against latent fingerprints collected by the Department of Defense (DOD) and the FBI from known and unknown terrorists around the world, DHS says.

DHS's US-VISIT program, in cooperation with CBP, is leading the department's upgrade to 10-fingerprint collection. This upgrade is the result of an interagency partnership among DHS, FBI, DOD and State.

US-VISIT provides biometric identification services to agencies throughout federal, state and local government. The program's most visible service is the collection of biometrics from international visitors when they apply for visas and enter the United States. Since US-VISIT began in 2004, DHS's use of biometrics has helped prevent the use of fraudulent documents, protect visitors from identity theft, and stop thousands of criminals and immigration violators from entering the United States.

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Biometrics Helps Identify, Apprehend Immigration Violators

The U.S. Department ofHomeland Security (DHS) announced initial results of a biometric identification pilot program between US-VISIT and the U.S. Coast Guard to target illegal migration in the Mona Passage, a body of water between the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. Since the start of the pilot program in November 2006, the Coast Guard has interdicted 21 vessels containing 558 undocumented aliens.

Twenty-two of the aliens apprehended face criminal prosecution for immigration offenses that prohibit attempts to enter or re-enter the U.S. illegally. Three of the aliens were previously removed as aggravated felons, and one alien was previously convicted of homicide in the United States.

"Biometrics is a powerful tool for the Coast Guard," says Rear Admiral Wayne Justice, Coast Guard assistant commandant for response. "It acts as a force multiplier by helping our officers to quickly and accurately identify the migrants they encounter, and aggressively enforce our immigration laws at sea. We're also sending a strong deterrent message to anyone thinking of entering U.S. territory through this body of water -- they will be apprehended, and we will know who they are and the facts of their immigration history."

The pilot program provides a technological capability for the Coast Guard to capture digital fingerprints and photographs from illegal aliens apprehended at sea and compare that biometric information against US-VISIT data. Aliens not being prosecuted are returned to the Dominican Republic, and their biometric information is retained and accessible to the Coast Guard to compare against future apprehensions.

The pilot project furthers a broader effort to develop a biometric mobile solution for collection and analysis, and represents another step in the department's comprehensive strategy to secure U.S. borders.

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Border Security System Faces Strategic, Operational, Technological Challenges

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's US-VISIT border security system faces a variety of technological and other challenges, a government watchdog agency says.

US-VISIT is designed to collect, maintain, and share data on selected foreign nationals entering and exiting the United States at air, sea, and land ports of entry (POEs). These data, including biometric identifiers like digital fingerprints, are to be used to screen persons against watch lists, verify identities, and record arrival and departure.

US-VISIT entry capability had been installed at 154 of the 170 land POEs. Officials at all 21 sites visited by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) reported that US-VISIT had improved their ability to process visitors and verify identities.

DHS plans to further enhance US-VISIT’s capabilities by, among other things, requiring new technology and equipment for scanning all 10 fingerprints, notes GAO, the nonpartisan investigative arm of Congress.

"While this may aid border security, installation could increase processing times and adversely affect operations at land POEs where space constraints, traffic congestion, and processing delays already exist. GAO’s work indicated that management controls in place to identify such problems and evaluate operations were insufficient and inconsistently administered," GAO says.

For example, GAO identified computer processing problems at 12 sites visited; at 9 of these, the problems were not always reported. US-VISIT has developed performance measures, but measures to gauge factors that uniquely affect land POE operations were not developed; these would put US-VISIT officials in a better position to identify areas for improvement, GAO finds.

US-VISIT officials concluded that, for various reasons, a biometric US-VISIT exit capability cannot now be implemented without incurring a major impact on land POE facilities. An interim nonbiometric exit technology tested did not meet the statutory requirement for a biometric exit capability and thus cannot ensure that visitors who enter the country are those who leave, GAO says.

"DHS had not yet reported to Congress on a required plan describing how it intended to fully implement a biometric entry/exit program or use nonbiometric solutions. Until this plan is finalized, neither DHS nor Congress is in a good position to prioritize and allocate program resources or plan for POE facilities modifications," GAO adds.

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Coast Guard Begins Biometric Use to Deter Illegal Entry by Sea

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has begun a pilot program that will collect biometric information from illegal migrants interdicted while attempting entry into U.S. territory through the body of water between the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico known as the Mona Passage.

The U.S. Coast Guard will compare the digital fingerprints and photographs of illegal migrants against the US‑VISIT database, which includes information about wanted criminals, immigration violators and those who previously encountered government authorities. Those attempting to illegally enter the United States and its territories are prosecuted under U.S. law in conjunction with bilateral agreements in effect.

"The Coast Guard's role in maritime border security is to support the national policy of orderly, safe and legal migration while ensuring safety of life at sea," says Admiral Thad Allen, the commandant of the Coast Guard. "Since 9/11, it has become increasingly important to know who is attempting to gain access to the United States, and this project gives us the means to positively identify and take appropriate actions regarding individuals intercepted at sea."

The partnership between the Coast Guard and US-VISIT represents the department’s commitment to detain, apprehend and prosecute illegal migrants and migrant smugglers. The project furthers the broader objective to develop a biometric mobile solution for DHS and is another step in the U.S. government’s plan to enhance security and ensure the integrity of the immigration and border management system.

The US‑VISIT program is a system of biometrically enabled security measures that collect biometric and biographic information from travelers at U.S. visa‑issuing posts around the world, and upon their arrival in the United States at air, sea and land border ports of entry.



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