US Army urged to comply more with biometrics standards

04 May 2011

Posted by Jayne Kavanagh

A method of collecting biometric information used primarily by the US Army is failing to meet standards set by the Department of Defense (DoD).

This is according to the Government Accountability Office (GAO), which has stated most of the collection devices employed by the DoD meet requirements to automatically transmit details to other agencies.

However, an audit by the body discovered the DoD's non-standardized system covers 13 per cent of the records it holds and prevents the automatic search of information against the FBI's database, Gov Info Security reports.

GAO Director of Defense Capabilities and Management, Davi D'Agostino, stated that the issue "may continue to limit DoD's ability to identify potential criminals or terrorists who have biometric records in other federal agency's biometric systems in a timely manner".

The audit office recommends that action is taken by the DoD to meet standards better and implements more routine tests to check for adherence.

An investigative unit of Congress, the GAO is responsible for monitoring the spending and receipt of public funds.