Gulf states recognise biometric identification as key to improving Middle East airport and port security

Speaking before Daon's presentation to the upcoming Middle East Airport, Port and Terminal Security Conference and Exhibition taking place at the Grand Hyatt Dubai from March 14-15, Murphy said the willingness of the Gulf States to embrace biometric technology placed the region at the forefront of next generation border and transportation security.

"The Gulf States have been quick to recognise the importance of biometric identity assurance in playing a key role in border and transportation security. The ability to quickly and positively identify known individuals allows a country's limited security resources to be focused on other potential threats while at the same time, enabling efficient travel and trade," said Murphy.

He pointed out that Daon was already engaged with several governments across the region on a range of initiatives. Such developments, said Murphy, were only the beginning. "The success of international programmes using biometrics will certainly provide a persuasive argument to develop further initiatives using this technology in the Middle East. Certainly a lot of interest is being shown in recently adopted schemes in the US such as the US Department of Homeland Security's Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) programme and the US e-gate programme - Registered Traveller - for which Daon is supplying the core biometric technology."

"The idea behind TWIC," said Murphy, "is to improve security by establishing a system-wide common credential for use across all transportation modes for all personnel requiring unescorted physical and/or logical access to secure areas of the US transportation system - thus enhancing security, improving commerce and protecting personal privacy."

The TWIC programme uses a card that contains biometric information to verify the identity of individuals with access to secure areas of the US transportation system. By utilising an individual's unique biometric attributes, it makes it impossible for another person to tamper with, duplicate or use the credentials of a legitimate worker.

Now in its third phase, it is expected that more than 200,000 transportation workers in 40-plus transportation facilities across the US will be enrolled in the programme in 2005, while ultimately the scheme could see upwards of 6 million transportation workers taking part.

"The TWIC programme is ground breaking in its scope and diversity, incorporating a broad range of workers from across the US transportation system. Obviously securing those responsible for maintaining the smooth operation of a country's ports and airports is of paramount importance," explained Murphy. "I expect the valuable experience gained in improving business processes through this programme will be well heeded in this part of the world."

Turning his attention to the US Registered Traveller programme, Murphy said that while the scheme was certainly not new to the Middle East, he expected many of the audience at the Middle East Airport, Port and Terminal Security Conference and Exhibition would be interested in how successful the programme has been in the US where it was deployed and fully operational within days of contract award.

"Obviously, many countries within the Middle East region have implemented biometric-based identification systems with the intent of speeding up travel and immigration processes. However, recent history plus the sheer volume of visitors to the US make the US Registered Traveller programme an excellent case study for the implementation of biometric identity assurance technology to improve airport and traveller security. Many countries will be looking to set up international Registered Traveller programmes to make international travel safer, faster and more convenient. I have no doubt that lessons learnt in the US can be applied to great affect in this part of the world.

The Middle East is fast developing a reputation for embracing and adapting new technologies to suit its needs. As of now, it stands as one of the world's fastest adopters of biometric technology, and soon nearly every airport and border crossing in the region will be considered state-of-the-art in terms of its ability to quickly and positively identify individuals," concluded Murphy.