Interpol World 2015 addresses terrorism and trans-border crime concerns

The opening keynote at the inaugural Interpol World 2015 addressed the rising threat of terrorism and trans-border crime, according to a report by The Star Online.

Interpol World 2015, held April 14 to 16 in Singapore, is an exhibition and conference show where public and private sector representatives come together to identify, develop and drive security initiatives for real world security situations across the areas of cybersecurity, safe cities, border management and supply chain security.

In his opening address, Interpol’s director of operational police support Michael O’Connell stressed that governments ought to consistently use biometric verification and other existing technologies to help reduce threats of terrorism and trans-border crime.

“We must strive to make routine use of Interpol’s stolen and lost travel document database,” said O’Connell.

He added that despite the “extraordinary efforts” to provide safer and more secure air travel by better identifying travellers, the danger is as apparent as before.

The security threats continue to exist because criminals are able to find new ways to take advantage of the system’s vulnerabilities and loopholes, said O’Connell.

As of March 2014, there has been more than 40 million travel documents reported lost or stolen, said Entrust Datacard’s director of product management, Mark Joynes.

Additionally, Joynes cited that Transportation Security Administration saw a 22% increase in the number of firearms uncovered at luggage checkpoints last year, while a US State Department 2014 report found that terrorist attacks increased by 43% worldwide in 2013.

“What is required is greater veracity in verifying identities and travel documents,” said Joynes. “Border control officers have to make critical decisions in less than 60 seconds for each inbound or outbound passenger. With the wrong decision, it can open the possibility of terrorist incidents, the proliferation of crime and risk the safety of citizens.”

Meanwhile, Singapore Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office S. Iswaran said that innovation in policing technologies and methods could help increase law enforcement agencies’ chances of capturing criminals.

“Given the increasingly trans-boundary nature of crime, international cooperation on a government-to-government level is essential,” Iswaran said in his opening address, adding that cooperation would result in faster identification, mitigation and investigation of threats.

BiometricUpdate.com is a media partner of Interpol World 2015.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  border security  |  cybersecurity  |  INTERPOL World Congress  |  terrorism