CBP Expands Use of Iris Recognition Technology

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is broadening its implementation of biometric iris recognition to enhance identity verification during border apprehensions, marking a significant expansion of its multi-modal biometric strategy. In the fourth quarter of the current fiscal year, approximately 69 percent of apprehensions involved iris scans, with plans to increase this figure to nearly 100 percent.

The expansion includes deploying iris scanning capabilities across 40 checkpoints within four regional sectors. This builds upon CBP’s existing biometric infrastructure, which has traditionally relied on facial recognition at land borders and fingerprint analysis. In the previous fiscal year, this combined biometric approach contributed to 8,000 positive identifications.

A CBP spokesperson emphasized the role of iris biometrics in confirming identities when fingerprint matches are unfeasible or compromised due to fingerprint degradation. The spokesperson noted, “Iris scanners are just a part of our biometric collection, like the collection of fingerprints and photographs for facial comparison.”

While the agency has conducted limited field studies of iris biometrics at official ports of entry, including airports, CBP has strategically decided to focus on facial and fingerprint biometrics at these locations. This decision aligns with international standards and global border control practices, which increasingly emphasize facial recognition for traveler verification.

The adoption of iris recognition technology specifically addresses challenges such as fingerprint degradation, which can occur due to manual labor or intentional alteration. Iris recognition offers distinct advantages as a biometric identifier, as the iris pattern remains largely unchanged throughout a person’s life and is extremely difficult to falsify. This technology has demonstrated particular effectiveness in identifying individuals who may have deliberately altered their fingerprints or whose prints have become worn through physical labor.

This initiative represents part of CBP’s broader strategy to implement a comprehensive, multi-modal biometric system for border security. The approach follows recommendations from the Department of Homeland Security for implementing layered identity verification methods that can adapt to various operational scenarios and environmental conditions.

The expansion of iris recognition capabilities complements CBP’s existing biometric exit program, which has already processed more than 238 million travelers through facial recognition. This multi-modal approach helps ensure accurate identification even when one biometric modality may be compromised or unavailable.

Source: FedScoop

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December 4, 2024 – by Cass Kennedy