DHS/ICE/PIA-065 Biometric Identification Transnational Migration Alert Program (BITMAP)

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) established the Biometric Identification Transnational Migration Alert Program (BITMAP) to promote and strengthen the international cooperation and coordination of law enforcement agencies’ efforts to combat transnational criminal activity, identify threats of potential terrorism, and enforce customs laws. Through BITMAP, foreign law enforcement partners share with the United States biometric and biographic information they collect within their borders on foreign nationals whom they reasonably suspect of being involved in terrorism-related activity or posing an immigration, criminal, or international security risk. In response to the information the United States receives from the foreign partner, the United States then may share, on a case-by-case basis, relevant derogatory information of investigative value about the subject individual with the foreign partner. This Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) provides transparency into how BITMAP leverages biometric and biographic information as part of ICE’s effort to detect and dismantle transnational criminal and terrorist networks that pose a risk to the United States. This Privacy Impact Assessment also describes how the exchange of information between ICE and its foreign law enforcement partners employs safeguards to protect privacy and civil liberties in accordance with law, regulation, and policy.

Associated SORN(s):

• DHS/ICE-011 Criminal Arrest Records and Immigration Enforcement Records
• DHS/CBP-006 Automated Targeting System
• DHS/USCIS-018 Immigration Biometric and Background Check (IBBC) System
• DHS/ALL-041 External Biometric Records
• DHS/ALL-043 External Biometric Administrative Records