A United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency representative recently stated that blockchain might become the next big thing in the travel security sector.
CBP’s program manager Sikina Hasham made the statement during the JetBlue Technology Ventures Blockchain in Travel Summit which was held in New York. His statement indicates the travel security sector’s growing interest in blockchain technology which has also been gaining traction in other industries. The CBP made the statement in response to a question by one of the panel moderators named David Post.
“One area we’ve seen a significant amount of success in is facial comparison and biometric data,” stated Hasham.
The CBP representative also revealed that there was a service that they had designed to determine the identity of any individual boarding an aircraft that is entering the U.S. He however noted that it would help very much if governments would collaborate to provide data that will then be used in the verification process.
The lack of mass adoption is a limiting factor
Hasham also noted that the current main challenge that blockchain has not gained significant traction and cannot, therefore, offer maximum value. This is because there is no standardized communication system that will allow communications to leverage blockchain systems. The CBP rep believes that the best way forward is for governments to drop legacy databases and instead implement blockchain technology. This would facilitate data sharing in major security sectors such as industry standards and border control among others.
The CBP rep also added that the key objective of blockchain adoption in the transport security sector is to encourage trade and travel while also facilitating a high level of security. However, CBP is still in the process of identifying how technology industry stakeholders will help. Despite all that, the government still has to address issues regarding the handling of decentralized information and privacy.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has reportedly requested startups to come up with blockchain solutions that will prevent the forging of digital documents. Combining biometrics with blockchain will help create multiple applications that will offer significant benefits in key sectors such as healthcare and banking.
