Biometrics Field Trial Evaluation Report

Section 1: Executive Summary

Background

The increasingly global economy, the advent of low‑cost air travel and the growing wealth in emerging economies have all contributed to a rapid rise in the transnational movement of people. That increase in movement brings with it an increase in irregular migration through identity and document fraud, and, therefore, concern—on the part of governments and citizens alike—about the ease with which criminals and would‑be terrorists can exploit weak identity systems to travel between countries.

Around the world, governments and industry have developed new tools to improve border security, better manage the growing flow of people and mitigate the attendant risks to health and security. Many countries have already implemented such tools, which often involve the use of biometrics—the automated recognition of individuals based on unique physical features such as fingerprints.

In Canada, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) and the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) have been using biometric technology for some time now to identify people in the refugee, immigration enforcement and border facilitation programs.

Building on that expertise, CIC designed a field trial to assess the broad impacts of biometric technology on CIC and on the CBSA and to do the following:

• Assess biometric technology as a tool for improving program integrity
• Assess the impact of biometrics on client service in Canada’s visa and entry programs
• Explore the organizational and procedural impacts of biometrics
• Understand the costs of implementing biometric technology

Description

The field trial was conducted over six months at two visa offices abroad, at two land ports of entry, at one airport, and at one refugee intake centre. All temporary resident visa applicants who appeared at those sites during the field trial were required to submit photos and fingerprints. Photos were collected at the visa offices, and fingerprints were collected at the point of first contact with the client—either the visa office or the port of entry.

Privacy was an important consideration in the design and implementation of the biometrics field trial. The Office of the Privacy Commissioner (OPC) was consulted starting at the design stage. The privacy mitigation measures recommended by the OPC were followed and the new personal information collected (clients’ biometric) was treated with the utmost care. All personal information gathered during the field trial was collected for statistical purposes only and stored in a secure database, and all requirements of Canada’s Privacy Act were strictly adhered to. The fingerprints collected were not used to make decisions on the approval of visa applications, the admitting of individuals to Canada or on the acceptance of refugee protection claims.

Evaluation methodology

Performance indicators were developed during the planning process, and the biometrics field trial was evaluated through system reports, site visits by an evaluator, client and employee surveys, and reviews by forensic specialists.

Key findings

Program integrity

• Fingerprint and facial recognition—either alone or together—can yield highly accurate results.
• Biometric technology is effective in detecting fraud.

Client service

• Full implementation of biometrics would require changes to service standards.
• Compliance with photo standards presents service challenges. Photo capture is strongly recommended if facial recognition is to be implemented fully.

Organizational and procedural impacts

• Renovations, additional employees and training were all required in order to implement biometrics to even a limited extent. Full implementation of biometrics will have an even greater effect on the facilities and resources required to deliver services.
• Integrated data systems are recommended for full implementation of biometrics.
• Ergonomics is an important issue in workstations with limited areas.

Costs

The field trial provided insight into the following:

• The costs of biometric technology.
• The impact of biometric processes on current data systems and on workflow.
• Human resource requirements, facility requirements, contracting and vendor costs, unit costs for equipment and the demand on network capacity to transmit new data.

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