Borders/Immig

More companies use DHS immigration database
DHS says that more than 118,000 public, private, and government employers enrolled in its E-Verify database as of 1 May; enrollment is growing, but E-Verify still is used by less than 2 percent of the nation’s more than 7.4 million employers
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DHS distributes $60 million is border security grants
Thirteen border states will receive $60 million from DHS to strengthen their capabilities to secure U.S. borders and territories
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San Diego uses biometrics to identify and remove criminal aliens
San Diego County Sheriff’s Department deputies are the first law enforcement unit in California to use DHS Secure Community program to receive biometric-based immigration information
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Travelers exiting U.S. will have fingerprints scanned
DHS relaunches a project to scan the fingerprints of international travelers leaving the united States; CBP will take fingerprints exiting the United States from Detroit, while TSA will do the same in Atlanta
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ABI Research: DHS a "potential goldmine" for wireless kit providers
Obama’s stimulus package earmarks $6.8 billion for wireless communications upgrades and new deployments; the health care and education market will receive some of it, but the real money is in selling wireless equipment to DHS and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), a new ABI Research report says
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U.S., Canadian land, sea travelers to face new entry requirements
The last part of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) kicks in Monday; U.S., Canadian land and see travelers entering the United States will have to present a passport or other approved documents; air travelers have already been doing so since 23 January 2007
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Airport flu scanners as global health alert increases
Australian government orders all airports to use thermal imaging systems to detect passengers who may be infected with swine flu; the scanners can detect if a passenger has a raised body temperature
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Drug cartels now use ultralight aircraft to smuggle drug into U.S.
The drug cartels south of the U.S. border have a new weapon in their arsenal: Ultralight aircraft; these ultralights can carry up to 300 pounds of narcotics
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RAID surveillance system deployed along border
Aerostats differ from blimps in that blimps are powered, while aerostats are anchored to the ground through a cranked tether that also supplies electrical power
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Aerostats used along India-Pakistan border and in other hotspots
Unpowered blimps have been used for two decades now; the one aerostat Kuwait owned alerted its leadership to the Iraqi tanks rolling toward the border in 1990; India, Pakistan buy them to bolster their border security
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DHS highlights successes in fight against trafficking and illegal immigration
On a visit to the U.S.-Mexico border, DHS secretary Napolitano highlights the department’s success in efforts to crack down on illegal immigration and contraband trafficking
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U.K. border agency notes first failure since becoming independent
The U.K. Border Agency became an independent government agency on 1 April; the next day, the system it uses to collect fingerprints from foreign visitors and compare them to a large biometric data base, malfunctioned
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Mexico police seize anti-aircraft weapon near U.S. border
A day before President Barack Obama is to visit Mexico, the Mexican police finds a truck-mounted anti-aircraft weapon on the U.S.-Maxico border
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Piracy boosts maritime security business
In London, the business capital of the world’s maritime industry, firms shape decisions on arming ships and negotiating with pirates
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Lieberman wants U.S.-Mexico border security funding in supplemental
President Obama has submitted a $83.4 billion supplemental request to Congress which contains $66 million in additional aid to Mexico’s anti-drug efforts (Congress has already allocated about $700 million to Mexico — including $300 million in the recently enacted fiscal 2009 omnibus spending bill); leading senators say more should be done to shore-up border protection, and they propose an amendment to the supplemental which would add $550 million in border security funding
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