Canadian government investigating biometric collection of temporary residents
10 June, 2009
category: Biometrics, Government
The Canadian government is intending to begin collection of fingerprint data on 15% of prospective temporary residents in the country starting in 2011, according to an Edmonton Sun article.
Further, by 2013, they plan on including 100% of temporary residents including those applying for special permits such as work permits or study permits. The overarching intention of the data collection is to stop the rise of identity theft going on in the country.
The decision on moving forward follows a successful pilot of the program in 2006. The government also has allocated $26 million for the project. Final approval from the board is expected by March 2010. Other facets of the program involve allowing for adding facial biometrics to the program in the future.
Despite this, privacy advocates including Canada’s Privacy Commissioner have expressed concerns over the project including on who will be able to access the data and how the data will be stored.
Read the full story here.