The US Army has inaugurated new biometric operations alongside the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) at the Biometric Technology Center (BTC) in West Virginia, US.
The new facility is a joint initiative of the US Department of Defense (DoD) and the Department of Justice (DoJ). It will see a team of network administrators, biometric examiners, and intelligence professionals work together to identify individuals that threaten national security.
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West Virginia US Senator Shelly Moore Capito said: “In a world that’s becoming increasingly dangerous and more difficult to figure out where the bad guys are, this centre of innovation and collaboration is where I believe we’re all at our best.”
The Defense Forensics and Biometrics Agency (DFBA) covers one-sixth of the 360,000ft2 biometric centre. The DFBA is a US Army field operating agency within the Office of the Provost Marshal General.
The remaining space is occupied by the FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) division.
The DFBA operates the US DoD database and focuses on encounters with known and suspected terrorists during military operations. The dataset is a major asset that enables counterterror operations to protect international and US borders.
Before being moved to the newly built facility, the DoD and the DoJ had two separate biometric facilities that were located in older buildings.
With the opening of the BTC, the DoD and FBI will be able to work in collaboration to carry out operations and technical innovations to identify threatening or dangerous individuals.
