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APIS Implementation in India to Check Smuggling

January 9, 2015
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Find Out More About How APIS Helps National SecurityFive airports across India have implemented an Advance Passenger Information System (APIS) in a bid to bring a halt to the smuggling problem by keeping track of ‘suspicious’ passengers.

Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad and Bengaluru airports now have fully operational APIS implementation, effectively beginning the creation of the electronic database of passengers, crew and airline personnel.

APIS was given its first outing in India last year at Indira Ghandi International Airport and has now become more widespread following the success of the system there. The Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) made the decision, under the Finance Ministry, to extend the implementation to other airports in India after arrests were made and passengers apprehended.

Customs officials released a statement earlier this week, “So far the system has been generating important inputs and its leads have resulted in apprehension of passengers trying to smuggle in gold and other banned items.”

According to the statement, there have been 399 cases of gold smuggling reported at Mumbai International airport, 265 at Chennai and 171 at Delhi airports. There have been 90 cases of gold smuggling reported at Kolkata International airport, 36 at Hyderabad and 34 at Bengaluru airports during the same period.

It is hoped that the success of APIS demonstrated at Indira Ghandi International will continue at the other locations.

Keith Vaz Criticises UK Borders and Immigration

December 21, 2014
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Providers of Advance Passenger Information SystemsKeith Vaz, chair of UK Home Affairs Select Committee, has openly criticised the state of the UK immigration system in a report that warns the system is in ‘intensive care’.

The report comes after almost ten years of troubled services for the UK borders, including the e-borders scheme that never quite made it off the mark. Mr Vaz is concerned that the promise of exit checks at British ports in the form of departure lists, set to be introduced this spring will not be forthcoming as he commented within the report that the list ‘no longer looks likely’.

Mr Vaz’ concerns grow as he looks at the increased risk of illegal migration and security. Bemoaning the actions, or lack of them, of previous governments he said, “Successive governments have spent millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money on the botched e-borders programme. Everyone who enters and leaves Britain must be counted in and out.” In 2003, plans were launched for the collection of Advance Passenger Information for those leaving the UK. API is received from airlines and operators bringing passengers into the UK, but there is a distinct lack of information about those that pass across our borders into Europe and beyond.

Mr Cameron argued that much is being done to halt the progress of illegal immigration and figures are being met. The debate continues.

Data Sharing Requirements Up in the Air Between UK & Germany

November 10, 2014
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Reliable Data Sharing from Leading APIS ProvidersSome German carriers could find themselves out in the cold with suspended UK flights if UK Government directives concerning the provision of Advance Passenger Information are passed, but not complied with.

Issues could arise as the UK border control system mirrors a similar system in the U.S. and asks for mandatory delivery of Advance Passenger Information in order for security services to monitor the movements of potential persons of interest as they travel to or pass through the UK. However, other countries in the E.U. would need to amend areas of their privacy laws in order for the system to be effective.

UK Home Office secretary, Mr Mark Sedwill issued a statement according to the Guardian newspaper, “We are looking in future legislation at taking mandatory powers. We are working with all the airlines. We have 90% of Advance Passenger Information.”

Advance Passenger Information (API) includes the personal details of passengers and flight crew and in some instances also contains methods of payment and itinerary details. In the U.S. API is a mandatory requirement and assists security agencies with monitoring and tracking of ‘at risk’ passengers.

Continuing, Mr Sedwill said, “We are in discussions, which for obvious reasons I have to keep somewhat private, with other EU countries to change their data protection legislation in order to require this data of the carrier.”

Other German airlines include Lufthansa and Germania. The debate will continue and was due to be discussed during the recent G6 summit in Paris last week.

U.N. Approval for New Rules to Track Foreign Fighters

October 14, 2014
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Worldwide Passenger Data Transfer ProvidersThe U.N. Security Council have called for new measures to help curb the movement of potential terrorists. Drafted by the U.S. the measures received unanimous approval from the Security Council, who intend to clamp down on funding and recruitment opportunities amongst the militant groups.

U.S. President, Mr Barack Obama said that it is believed that around 15,000 fighters have travelled to Iraq and Syria to join the Islamic State or Jabhat al-Nusra, the al-Qaeda affiliated group, from more than 80 nations. Speaking about the crisis at an unusual Security Council session, Mr Obama said, “The tactic of terrorism is not new. What brings us together today, what is new, is the unprecedented flow of fighters in recent years to and from conflict zones, including Afghanistan and the Horn of Africa, Yemen, Libya, and most recently, Syria and Iraq.”

Strengthened steps will be taken to prevent suspected foreign terrorist fighters from entering their territories or passing through borders. Part of the plan is the widespread provision of Advance Passenger Information (API), currently mandatory in the U.S. and spreading throughout the world.

Mandatory provision of API, which includes passenger details, destination countries and methods of payment in some cases, can help governments and border agencies to track the movements of travellers, thus indicating potential high-risk passengers for further investigation. The resolution also includes a strengthening of the legal framework for international action by the suggestion of a passage of legislation that can give countries greater flexibility for the prosecution of suspected foreign fighters.

The U.N. have also encouraged member states to be more co-operative with information-sharing.

“Foreign terrorist fighters increase the intensity, duration and intractability of conflicts, and also may pose a serious threat to their states of origin, the states they transit and the states to which they travel,” the resolution said. More efficient methods of sharing information is what is called for to discourage recruitment, organisation and financing of terrorist movements and the aim of the resolution is to make this as difficult as possible.

Ireland Calls for Advance Passenger Information in Joint EU Plan

October 12, 2014
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Advance Passenger Information ProvidersIreland has called for a co-ordinated push in the EU to crack down on terrorism and organised crime, following a decision with Britain to share intelligence on selected flights.

Advance Passenger Information (API) from all ports should be shared across Europe, which, according to Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald, ‘is a tool of proven potential’.

It has been indicated through military intelligence and information supplied to the British Government by the Garda Special Branch that Ireland has been used as a base for regular visits to Iraq and Syria by up to 30 jihadis, which has led to increased surveillance efforts in a bid to track their movements.

The minister said that the strengthening of security of national and international borders was a ‘key element in protecting our citizens from terrorist threats’ and that API exchange was a ‘major boost towards achieving that objective’.

API is transmitted electronically to the governments and border agencies of destination countries. It is usually collected at the time of booking. The U.S. operate mandatory API collection, but as yet, the system is not mandatory in other countries, although many agencies are calling for the collection of passenger data across the world to keep borders secure with the advance notification of potentially high-risk passengers.

Philippines Address Advance Passenger Information After 55 Arrests

September 4, 2014
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Advance Passenger Information System ProvidersAfter arresting 55 illegal foreign workers in three Metro Manila cities last month, the Philippines Bureau of Immigration is putting pressure on the Government to address Advance Passenger Information in a bid to quell illegal activities.

“We will also coordinate with the Department of Foreign Affairs to formulate measures in screening the subjects prior to issuance of entry visas to the Philippines,” said spokesperson Elaine Tan, likening the search for illegal foreigners, once within the metropolis to “finding a needle in a haystack.”

The provision of Advance Passenger Information would alert the border control agencies of such potential illegals before they arrive in the Philippines.

The arrests were made following an anonymous tip-off that workers were operating illegally on construction sites and in retail establishments. Elaine Tan confirmed that the workers would be deported if they fail to produce the relevant documents to support their employment status.

Border Security Program Termination Leaves UK with Fine

September 1, 2014
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Other Providers of Electronic Border Security SolutionsThe UK will be required to pay a US defence company £224 million after a London tribunal found that a border security program contract termination was unlawful.

Raytheon Systems were awarded the contract for the provision of electronic borders, through a program devised in 2003 for the collection of Advance Passenger Information. The Home Office claim that Raytheon missed milestones in 2010 and parts of the program were running at least a year behind.

In spite of this, the damages award consists of £126 million for assets in the form of computer systems that the company had delivered prior to termination of the contract and a further £50 million has been awarded in damages to Raytheon. The decision was described as a ‘catastrophic result’ by Keith Vaz, following receipt of a letter from Home Secretary Theresa May.

“The government stands by the decision to end the eBorders contract with Raytheon. This decision was, and remains, the most appropriate action to address the well-documented issues with the delivery and management of the program,” she said.

A new border security program is being developed.

Dubai Refurbishment to Bring Surge in Passenger Traffic & Plans for APIS

August 14, 2014
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Find out more about Advance Passenger Information (APIS)According to Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Makhtoum, president of DCAA and chairman of Dubai airports, the runway refurbishment at Dubai International Airport is expected to bring in a significant surge of passenger traffic.

The expected rise lends weight to the proposed introduction of Advance Passenger Information System (APIS).

“We are confident the completion of the major runway refurbishment program in our history and full schedule operations ahead of the Eid holidays will bring in a significant surge in air traffic,” he said in a message to Via Dubai, the official bi-lingual newsletter of Dubai Civil Aviation Authority (DCAA).

“We are confident about the airport handling over 70 million passengers in 2014, which will bring us further closer to becoming the world’s number one airport for international passengers,” he said.

Via Dubai also announced the GDRFA Dubai is working on plans to launch the Advance Passenger Information System (APIS) by the end of this year, or early next year, once approval of the Ministry of the Interior has been granted.

The next project in the pipeline for the airport is a new concourse, which will be connected to an existing terminal by train and is expected to be open in the first quarter of 2015.

The new concourse, the fourth at the airport, is part of a $7.8 billion expansion program, specifically designed to boost the airport’s traffic capability to more than 100 million passengers per year by 2020. The development program is intended to give the airport a capacity for 160 million passengers per year by the time the final phase is completed.

Manila Immigration Bureau Plan to Introduce APIS

August 8, 2014
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APIS Transmission ProvidersManila’s Bureau of Immigration (BI) is set to introduce APIS in a bid to exclude unwanted foreign visitors. The Advance Passenger Information System, mandatory for U.S. travellers, will be operational following government approval.

The BI commissioner, Mr Siegfred Mison said on Friday that ‘immigration authorities from countries where passengers originated will be required to submit names and personal circumstances of passengers boarding airlines and ships bound for the Philippines, allowing those with derogatory records to be segregated pending further security checks’.

The planned introduction of APIS is a part of preparations for two big events in Manila’s calendar, namely the visit of Pope Francis in January 2015 and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Conference (APEC) in November.

“As soon as the measure is approved we will bid it to interested parties the APIS scan data base which will receive and accept the information sent by the BI foreign counterparts,” said Mison.

Passenger Name Record Transfer Agreement with EU & Canada

July 14, 2014
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Find out more about Passenger Name Record data transferLast month saw a new agreement signed on the process, collection and transfer of Passenger Name Record details by air carriers to the authorities in Canada. The new terms supersede the current agreement made in 2006.

A legal framework will be established for the transfer of Passenger Name Record (PNR) data by carriers operating flights between the EU and Canada. Transmission of the passenger data must remain secure and transfer to the correct authority must be ensured. Subsequent use of the data by the authorities must remain secure.

PNR data is used for the prevention of and the detection of terrorist activity or serious crime and the subsequent investigation and prosecution of the said activity if necessary.

Before the agreement is put into place, consent must be obtained from the European Parliament, and then the EU Council of Ministers can adopt its decision on the conclusion of the agreement. Similar agreements for the transfer of Passenger name Record information are in place with the USA and Australia.