Interpol Database to Boost Italian Border Security
The New York Jewish Times
November 8, 2006
(Interpol) Border control officers in Rome are to be given direct access to Interpols Stolen and Lost Travel Documents (SLTD) database, providing Italy with an extra line of defense against criminals and terrorists from entering the country.
The announcement was made during a visit to Interpols General Secretariat in Lyon, France by Alessandro Pansa, Deputy Director General of Public Security and Carlo De Stefano, Director General of the National Antiterrorism Department.
Created in 2002 with just 12,000 entries, Interpols SLTD database now contains information on nearly 13 million documents from 118 countries, and is helping revolutionise how countries protect their borders.
Italy was one of the first countries to contribute information to the SLTD database, with details of nearly three million documents entered shortly after its inception.
Technology developed by Interpol now means that with just one swipe, officers checking a passport again their own national database can now also instantly verify if the document has been recorded lost or stolen internationally.
Use of the database has been endorsed by the United Nations Security Council, G8, European Union, Organization for Security and cooperation in Europe, International Civil Aviation Organization and members of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation.
Providing access to the SLTD database is just one of a series of measures being introduced by the Italian authorities, including the creation of a central office for training in identifying counterfeited and false travel documents in order to support its ongoing fight against all forms of crime including illegal immigration and terrorism
