Immigration and US Customs Security
The following are a list of technological programs designed to facilitate the flow of legal immigrants while protecting U.S. borders. Many of these programs are designed using biometric technologies in order to verify the identities of immigrants coming to the U.S. Databases have been developed in order to keep track of the identities and basic information of legal immigrants working and studying in the U.S. Some of these programs are also intended on decreasing the processing times of immigrants arriving at U.S. airports. Other programs are designed to facilitate the flow of traffic at U.S points of entry and exit for those who work across the U.S. border in Mexico or Canada.
The underlying goal of these programs is to protect U.S. borders. The Department of Homeland Security and Customs and Border Protection aim to keep illegal immigrants from entering the U.S., decrease illegal and criminal activity across U.S. borders such as drug smuggling, and keep criminals and terrorist from entering the U.S.
| Program | Description | |
|---|---|---|
| SEVIS | A web-based system for maintaining information on international students and exchange visitors in the United States | |
| IDENT-IAFIS | Provides rapid identification of individuals with outstanding criminal warrants through electronic comparison of ten-print digital fingerscans against a vast nationwide database of previously captured fingerprints | |
| NEXUS | A program designed to simplify border crossings for pre-approved, low-risk travellers | |
| SENTRI | An automated dedicated commuter lane that uses advanced Automatic Vehicle Identification (AVI) technology as U.S borders | |
| APIS | An automated system capable of performing database queries on passengers and crewmembers prior to their arrival in or departure from the United States | |
| Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) | A system-wide common credential that could be used across all transportation modes | |
| PortPass | a group of pre-inspection technology programs used at ports of entry to facilitate the speedy passage of low-risk travelers | |
| USPASS |
An automated system that can significantly reduce CBP immigration inspection processing time for authorized travelers | |
| SENTRI | An automated dedicated commuter lane using advanced Automatic Vehicle Identification (AVI) technology | |
| OARS | Uses telecommunication technology so that boaters may report to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers | |