The National Institute of Standards and Technology announced a competition to award a approximately $10 million for pilot projects to accelerate progress toward improved systems for interoperable, trusted online credentials that go beyond simple user IDs and passwords.

The NIST-hosted national program office will manage the competition for the National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace. According to the Federal Funding Opportunity, NIST anticipates funding five to eight projects for up to two years in the range of approximately $1.25 million to $2 million per year, though proposals requesting smaller amounts may be considered. The deadline for submitting initial proposals is March 7. 

Biometrics enable expedited border screening

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Global Entry program is expanding enabling enrolled U.S. citizens to enjoy expedited screening when returning from travel abroad to a number of domestic airports. The program also makes them eligible to participate in similar programs at foreign airports.

Global Entry has 200,000 travelers enrolled, says John Wagner, executive director of Admissibility and Passenger Programs at U.S. Customs and Border Protection. It’s open to U.S. citizens and permanent residents as well as citizens of Canada, Mexico and The Netherlands via reciprocal arrangements. 

In an effort to streamline passenger security, Jakarta, Indonesia’s Soekarno-Hatta Airport has opened the country’s first biometric immigration gate.

Fingerprint biometric identification provider BIO-key International, Inc. and Oakwell Engineering Limited partnered to create the new gate, designed for use by passengers with electronic passports. Passengers submit their e-passports and authenticate with a fingerprint. 

Human Recognition Systems (HRS) has added features and enhancements to its MForce latent fingerprint processing product.

In an effort to reduce operation times and costs, HRS has developed MForce as a mobile biometric product that enables law enforcement officers and military to obtain and process latent and livescan fingerprints in the field. By processing prints onsite, users are able to quickly provide investigators with intelligence. 

India’s government has called a truce in the ongoing argument between the Ministry of Home Affairs’s National Population Register (NPR) project and the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), reports the Indian Express.

Both agencies will continue on with their projects, collecting biometric data in the states in which they operate. They also agree to accept data that the other has compiled. Per the new agreement, however, the NPR database will be considered the authority if discrepancies arise. 

British Columbia is moving forward with plans to upgrade its CareCard program. According to The Vancouver Sun, the new card will provide access to a variety of regional services including electronic health records, driver license and school registration for children.

The local government plans to sign a $20 million, six year deal with Toronto-based SecureKey to provide all of the necessary technology, including contactless readers which enable citizens to tap their card to access the government stored information. 

Russia has pushed back the launch of its universal eID card to January 2013, reports The Moscow Times.

Originally scheduled to roll out this month, the card is supposed to function as an electronic ID, driver’s license, proof of auto insurance, ATM card and immigration document, along with other possible features.