Homeland Security expanding biometric security checks for international travel

Several of the perpetrators responsible for the 9/11 plane hijackings were in the U.S. because they overstayed their visas. One way this was done was by having an accomplice fly out of the country using another’s passport. Biometric data collection at U.S. borders began in 2004 in part to prevent the swapping of identities, one person flying out of the country on the expired visa, the other person staying on using the unexpired visa.   

Fingerprint scanning is set to be in place at the nation’s busiest airports by 2018. The Department of Homeland Security plans to increase facial image and iris scans as well, taking advantage of new technology. The goal is to make border crossings efficient and secure for both U.S. citizens and foreign visitors.

Currently U.S. citizen biometric information is discarded after verification is made, and non-U.S. citizen data, including biometric information, is kept for 75 years. With the expansion of border security and biometric data collection, privacy concerns include the increase in surveillance, data retention time, and the government’s ability to safeguard that data from hackers. For the latter, it is recommended that the date be encrypted and have “cancellable properties” to render stolen data useless.

The cost for the expanded biometric data capture program is not yet known as the DHS is still deciding which system to go with.

Homeland Security eyes expanding biometric collections at US borders

By Malena Carollo, Contributor to the Christian Science Monitor, September 9, 2016