Every day, thousands of people from around the world apply for entry to the United States. They arrive with visas, passports, and other travel documents to verify their identity. But are they who they say they are? The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is working to ensure that only legitimate visitors gain entry into the United States. With the assistance of MITRE, the DHS has launched the United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology (US-VISIT) Program to develop new techniques for safeguarding our borders.

Designed to enhance security at America's borders by gathering and storing information on non-citizens trying to enter the country, US-VISIT maintains a database of information, including digital fingerprints and photographs, which was deployed at 115 airports and 15 major seaports in January 2004 and expanded to the 50 busiest U.S. land ports in December 2004.

To verify the identity of individuals using visas to enter the United States, US-VISIT relies primarily on fingerprints. The Border Patrol has used fingerprints and other biometrics for many years, but the September 11 terrorist attacks led to a push to deploy biometrics more widely.

The role of US-VISIT begins overseas at U.S. consular offices where visas are issued. Before prospective travelers receive their visas, they are interviewed by U.S. Department of State personnel who collect biographical information, take the applicant's photograph, and obtain fingerprints by using an inkless, digital fingerscanner. Because US-VISIT data is linked electronically to Department of State data, immigration officials can verify an arriving passenger's passport and visa.

Providing "Thought Leadership"

MITRE has played a key role in developing the US-VISIT program. "We've been a major contributor to the thought leadership of US-VISIT from the very beginning," says Sam Lane, an information systems engineer at MITRE's Center for Enterprise Modernization (CEM).

"As the program was getting established, we have helped the government with some of the day-to-day activities," says Barbara Toohill, MITRE's US-VISIT program manager. The US-VISIT team at MITRE has relied on the company's prior experience to get the program up and running. Drawing on work performed by CEM for the Internal Revenue Service, Customs and Border Protection, and other agencies, a team from across MITRE helped US-VISIT establish a program office, hiring procedures, a procurement process, and a prime contractor, among other things. "This was a genuine startup," says Lane.

"US-VISIT is large in scope but small in staff," adds Mervyn Levy, a multi-discipline systems engineer in CEM. "And we've actually been shoulder to shoulder with the technical folks down here."

MITRE's expertise has also been applied to another crucial component of US-VISIT: safeguarding privacy. During the creation of US-VISIT, Tom Ridge, then Homeland Security secretary, decided that information collected under the program's auspices would be subject to the provisions of the Privacy Act of 1974, even though the letter of the law applies only to U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents. Under the law, information collected by the government to identify citizens or permanent residents can't be used without their consent, or without mechanisms that enable them to know how the information will be used or to correct it if it's wrong.

According to Julie McEwen, the leader of MITRE’s US-VISIT privacy team, understanding how privacy is safeguarded in foreign countries helps foster a better understanding of the expectations of foreign nationals when they enter the United States. To better understand the role of privacy in other countries, a MITRE team (see "Privacy Team") studied the concept of privacy in Canada, New Zealand, and various European countries.

"Over in Europe in particular, and elsewhere overseas, they take a firm stance about privacy," says McEwen. "They feel that it's a right. In some countries, it's actually codified in their constitutions. Privacy in the United States is more a patchwork of laws and guidance. So there's a very different perspective in some cases. And we have to keep that in mind with US-VISIT, too, because the people who are covered under US-VISIT are foreign nationals, and they may have a different view of privacy. And that's why we took other areas of the world into account in developing the privacy principles."

Future Challenges

By the end of 2005, US-VISIT is scheduled for implementation at all land ports in the United States. One of the program's major challenges is finding a way to run checks on individuals as they attempt to leave the United States. Recently the MITRE US-VISIT team designed a test for a pilot of an exit program. We are also working with US-VISIT to identify new technologies to satisfy emerging requirements, including document readers, facial recognition technology, and technology that could allow U.S. immigration officials to capture information on people approaching the U.S. border before they arrive at a point of entry.

Challenges still remain to make America's borders truly secure. Consolidating the various screening programs for individuals seeking entry into the United States is one example of an issue that still needs to be addressed.

US-VISIT is one step of many that will be required to protect our borders. As US-VISIT evolves, so will the role of the MITRE team as a strategic advisor. To date, US-VISIT has met every one of its milestones and MITRE will continue to offer its support to meet the challenges ahead.

—by W. Russell Woolard

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