Trump’s executive order on immigration addresses biometric entry-exit tracking system

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Wednesday which includes a series of initiatives to address immigration, including a proposal to establish a national biometric ID program for non-citizens entering and leaving the U.S., according to a report by Payments Source.

According to a draft executive order leaked to civil rights advocates and obtained by The Washington Post, one of the measures of the executive order calls for an “Expedited Completion of Biometric Entry-Exit Tracking System”.

Section 8 of the executive order draft reads: “The Secretary of Homeland Security shall expedite the completion and implementation of biometric entry-exit tracking system for all travelers to the United States, as recommended by the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States.”

The draft then goes on to state that the Secretary of Homeland Security will be required to “submit to the President periodic reports on the progress of the directive”.

Intended to be used against non-citizens entering and exiting the country, the biometric identification system is designed to prevent immigrants from fraudulently receiving government benefits, according to the congressional aides and immigration experts.

The biometric ID system could potentially have a huge effect on the security industry, along with financial services risk strategies, according to payments experts.

A national biometric ID program would see large amounts of money paid to biometric solution vendors, and ultimately place biometrics as a security method over existing authentication methods like passwords and PINs.

“This could lead to an enactment and requirement of multi-factor authentication with the mobile phone being the new hardware,” Richard Crone, a payments consultant said. “The government would not have to pay for any new hardware in that case.”

Article Topics

biometric exit  |  biometrics  |  identity verification  |  immigration  |  national ID  |  U.S. Government