Australia chided for not sharing biometric data
29 May, 2009
category: Biometrics
At the Biometrics Institute Conference held in Sydney, Australia, officials from the International Crime Database Service Interpol and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security have stated that Australia shares very little of the biometric data that it collects and stores with the international community, according to an IT News article.
Both agencies are disappointed by the lack of sharing of pertinent biometric data from the country as they depend on such data to assist in tracking and arresting international criminals.
The example the agencies use to prove the usefulness behind the sharing of this information comes from the arrest of a man wanted for rape in Australia who was arrested applying for political asylum in the UK following the U.S. running his fingerprint from a recent visit from Australia to the states. Some, however, have come to Australia’s defense for their one-way sharing citing a worry about the privacy of the data once accessed and held by other nations and organizations.
Read the full story here.