The FBI announced it has awarded Lockheed Martin Transportation and Security Solutions the contract for the design, development, documentation, integration, testing, and deployment of the Next Generation Identification (NGI) System.

The NGI System will expand on the FBI Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) Division's current Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System (IAFIS), which is operated and maintained in Clarksburg, W.V. The NGI System will provide improvements to current services and new functionality for the criminal justice, national security, and civil communities.

The industry of identification systems is moving beyond dependency on a unimodal (e.g., fingerprint) biometric identifier and is beginning to incorporate multimodal biometrics such as iris and facial imaging. Due to the many issues associated with identity theft, lost and stolen documents, and the ability to spoof standard name-based identity management systems, coupled with the rapid advances in technology and the nation's focus on combating terrorism, there are increasing needs for new and improved identification services. In line with this trend, the NGI System will advance the integration strategies and indexing of additional, lawfully authorized, biometric data, providing the framework for a future multimodal system which will facilitate biometric fusion identification techniques. This framework will be expandable, scalable, and flexible to accommodate new technologies and emerging biometrics standards, and will be interoperable with existing biometric systems.

It is important to note that the NGI system will not expand the categories of individuals from whom the fingerprints and biometric data may be collected; however, it will allow for the collection of additional biometric data from criminals and terrorists. Although fingerprint data will remain the primary means of identification, the collection of additional biometric data will be used for investigative purposes and to assist in the identification process.

"IAFIS has been a fantastic tool in support of criminal justice and the war on terror," says Thomas E. Bush, III, Assistant Director of the FBI's CJIS Division. "Our partners on the Advisory Policy Board (APB) and National Crime Prevention and Privacy Compact Council have defined a need for more modern technology that supports their current mission requirements. NGI will give us bigger, better, faster capabilities and lead us into the future. We have added additional capabilities to our current system, and are working with the Departments of Homeland Security, Defense, and State and the international law enforcement community in making our communities and nation safer. NGI will leverage the biometrics expertise in the north-central West Virginia area."

Committed to providing the highest quality biometric identification techniques, the FBI has employed a shared management approach with its partners through the CJIS APB and the National Crime Prevention and Privacy Compact Council to define the NGI System requirements and capabilities. These groups include representatives from criminal justice, national security, and civil agencies throughout the nation.

Lockheed Martin Transportation and Security Solutions will be developing the foundational framework which includes new technologies, emerging biometric standards, and interoperability with existing biometric systems. Additionally, Lockheed Martin Transportation and Security Solutions, along with the FBI, will conduct trade studies to support a multi-biometric framework as the new capabilities are phased in according to schedule throughout the development cycle.

The NGI System will enhance fingerprint and latent print processing services, and increase system availability, accuracy, and capacity. The NGI System will provide enhancements to the FBI's Interstate Photo System by expanding the photo repository and providing photo search capabilities. Improvements will further expand disposition submission capabilities. Furthermore, the IAFIS repository will be enhanced to improve its infrastructure, provide single identity management, and support new biometric modalities such as iris imaging. In addition, a National Palm Print System will be created to provide a centralized national repository for palm print data to allow for comparisons of latent palm prints left at crime scenes against that repository.