Accenture will continue efforts to enhance security through
biometric solutions for identity management
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has notified Accenture of
its intent to continue the contract under which the company acts as
prime integrator for the United States Visitor and Immigrant Status
Indicator Technology (US-VISIT) program. The original contract was
awarded to Accenture (NYSE: ACN) in May 2004 and included a five-year
base period plus five one-year options.
The US-VISIT program, created in 2003, provides biometric identification
and analysis services to agencies throughout the immigration and border
management, law enforcement and intelligence communities to help
government decision makers identify, mitigate and eliminate security
risks. US-VISIT’s most visible service is the
collection and analysis of digital fingerprints and photographs from
non-U.S. citizens at visa-issuing posts and ports of entry. Immigration
officials rely on this information to help them make visa-issuance and
admission decisions.
To further enhance security, DHS asked the Accenture team to increase
the biometric identity capability at the ports of entry from two to 10
fingerprints. Work on the 10-fingerprint implementation began in 2007,
with the subsequent roll-out to 10 U.S. airports completed earlier this
year. DHS plans to replace all two-fingerprint scanners with
10-fingerprint scanners at all U.S. ports of entry by the end of this
year.
“The US-VISIT program will evolve over time
with increasingly robust biometric technologies and interoperability
with other countries’ systems,”
said Jerry Briggs, managing director of Accenture’s
U.S. Federal practice. “Accenture shares DHS’s
commitment to providing biometric identity management services to its
customers and will continue seeking innovative ways to deploy
technologies and strategies that help make the program a success.”
Accenture LLP leads a team that includes L-3 Communications (previously
The Titan Corporation); Raytheon Company; and Systems Research and
Applications Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of SRA
International, Inc. Key small business team members include Blackstone
Technology Group; Intelligent Decisions, Inc.; SyApps, LLC; and
TSymmetry, Inc.
About Accenture
Accenture LLP is the U.S.-based business of Accenture, the global
management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company.
Combining unparalleled experience, comprehensive capabilities across all
industries and business functions, and extensive research on the world’s
most successful companies, Accenture collaborates with clients to help
them become high-performance businesses and governments. With more than
180,000 people in 49 countries, the company generated net revenues of
US$19.70 billion for the fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2007. Its home page
is www.accenture.com.
Accenture
Lisa Meyer, 1-703-947-3846
Lisa.M.Meyer@accenture.com
