This Article is From Aug 22, 2009

UK expands crackdown on identity fraud

UK expands crackdown on identity fraud
London:

The UK has signed a new fingerprint sharing deal with Canada and Australia as part of its international drive to tackle identity fraud, official sources in London said.

Under the new data sharing agreement, the UK will be able to swap fingerprint information on foreign criminals and asylum seekers with the two countries, making it easier to flag up those migrants who try to hide their past from authorities, while ensuring protection of personal information.

This agreement has been developed by the members of the Five Country Conference, which is a forum for cooperation on measures to improve immigration controls and border security.

The US will be joining the agreement shortly, and New Zealand is considering legislation to join it in the future.

Each country will have the same ability to check fingerprints, and for the first year of the agreement each country will be able to share 3,000 sets of fingerprints with partner countries. This number will rise as the deal rolls out.

The collaboration will make it easier to detect those people with previous criminal histories in other countries, as well as speed up removals and establish previously unknown identities.

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