• Biometrics testing introduced for applicants of Australia Visa

    Australia begins to collect biometric information seeking protection under the Australian Visa program; for the next six months, the program will be implemented in Sydney and Melbourne and will be voluntary; at the end of the pilot the government will consider national compulsory expansion of the process.

  • Global Entry to become permanent

    DHS secretary Janet Napolitano has decided to make the Global Global Entry system — a quicker way through customs and border control — permanent; U.K. and U.S. authorities are also working on an iris recognition scheme, similar to the Dutch Privium project, to fast-track entry to the United Kingdom

  • Improving security with enhanced face recognition technology

    Researchers at the University of Miami College of Engineering have developed ways to make facial recognition technology more efficient while improving accuracy; they say their state-of-the-art system is capable of photographing an image of someone’s face and ear and comparing it against pre-stored images of the same person, with 95-100 percent accuracy

  • U.K. to start issuing non-EU identity cards on 6 January

    Visitors to the United Kingdom who extend their stay in the country beyond six months will be issued non-EU biometric identity cards; the U.K. Border Agency has already issued over 100,000 identity cards mainly to students extending their stay or to spouses

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  • U.S. considers facial recognition, eye scans at border

    DHS proposes to spend billions of dollars collecting fingerprints and eye scans from all foreign travelers at U.S. airports as they leave the country; already, the United States demands biometric data, typically fingerprints and digital photos, from arriving air and sea travelers with visas; the aim is to try to ensure the person matches the individual who was given the visa overseas. Canadians and Mexicans are currently exempt

  • FBI says facial recognition not ready for prime time

    An FBI expert said that facial recognition does not figure in the FBI’s biometric strategy; he said facial recognition could have been a killer application — but it cannot; “The algorithms just do not exist to deliver the highly reliable verification required. This is even though the FBI has been evaluating facial recognition technology since 1963,” he said

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  • Aussie forensic biologist pushing for usage of ear biometrics

    Sydney-based ear biometrics specialist says the ear biometrics, which involves analyzing photographs of ears, is an ideal way to identify people; “It’s practical, it’s fast, it’s cost effective and it’s an alternative method so you don’t have to give up cracking a case or identifying a victim”

  • Schools are spearheading the use of biometrics

    Approximately 10 percent of U.K. schools are deploying biometric technologies, according to Alasdair Darroch, director of Biostore

  • U.K. abandons DNA retention project

    At present in England and Wales, DNA is taken from every person arrested; at the last count the National DNA Database contained 986,000 profiles belonging to people never convicted of a crime; the DNA records were supposed to be kept for twelve years; the Home Office says it is now reconsidering this policy

  • U.K. Border Agency reinstates DNA tests, sort of

    Africans who want to immigrate to the U.K. found a relatively easy way to do so: they seek political asylum, saying they come from war-ravaged countries; the U.K. Border Agency wanted to make sure, by checking their DNA, that they come from the war-ravaged countries they claim to come from; scientists criticized the scheme as “naive” and “scientifically flawed,” so the UKBA suspended it — only to reinstate it the next day, partially

  • Biometric security for London 2012 Olympic Games already in place

    The U.K. government’s security preparations for the 2012 Olympic Games start early: Laborers on the site of the Olympic village are subject to rigorous biometric checks; the metropolitan police hints that as we get closer to the games, local residents may be subject to similar measures

  • U.K. Border Agency suspends "flawed" asylum DNA testing

    The Home Office wanted to ascertain the nationality of asylum seekers by testing their DNA; scientists described the idea as “naive and scientifically flawed”; “You’d be better off looking at the color of [asylum seekers’] shoes,” one scientists says; Home Office suspends the plan

  • Passport production brings L-1 $195 million

    The latest in a string of biometric contracts brings the Stamford, Connecticut company $195 million deal to provide the U.S. Department of State with a high-security production system for e-passports

  • Apple offers facial recognition for iPhoto

    Biometric technology is used in security and e-commerce, but it can also be used to shorten searches through large digital photo banks; Apple offers facial recognition for its iPhoto

  • Growth of Middle East ports means growth in demand for security

    Rapid expansion of terminal capacity and new seaports to create growth opportunities in the Middle East maritime security market