This program, initiated last November, is an information sharing effort between US VISIT and the U.S. Coast Guard to address the challenge of identifying illegal migrants who are interdicted at sea. The pilot program provides the Coast Guard with the technical capability to digitally capture fingerprints from illegal migrants apprehended at sea. The Coast Guard then uses satellite technology to immediately compare the migrant information against US VISIT's data, which includes information about wanted criminals, immigration violators and those who have previously encountered government authorities.
Until now, the Coast Guard did not have the technology to accurately identify illegal migrants interdicted in the most highly traveled areas, namely around Puerto Rico. The success of the program has significantly advanced the effort to develop effective mobile solutions for biometric collection and analysis, and represents another step in the department's comprehensive strategy to secure the nation's borders.
Representatives from many federal agencies and offices have joined together to make this program possible, including DHS's U.S. Coast Guard , US-VISIT, Customs and Border Protection, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement; the U.S. Attorney's Office in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Embassy in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
The U.S. Coast Guard is a military, maritime, multi-mission service within the Department of Homeland Security dedicated to protecting the safety and security of America.
US VISIT provides biometrics based identity management services to entities throughout the U.S. government.