PURSUIT OF TERRORIST INFORMATION EXCHANGE: ROK

C O N F I D E N T I A L SEOUL 004297 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/18/2016 TAGS: KVPR PTER PREL PGOV PINR CVIS ASEC KHLS KS SUBJECT: PURSUIT OF TERRORIST INFORMATION EXCHANGE: ROK REF: STATE 190832 Classified By: POL M/C Joseph Y. Yun. Reasons 1.4 (b,d). (U) The following responses are keyed to reftel questions: ¶A. (SBU) Immigration Databases: -- The Korean Immigration Bureau (KIB) under the Ministry of Justice maintains a computerized entry and exit tracking system called Immigration Control Information System (ICIS). ICIS is available at all ROK ports of entry (POEs). -- Post's Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (DHS/ICE) evaluates the ICIS system as effective and on par with systems in most industrialized countries. The KIB has indicated that budgetary constraints could impact future software and hardware upgrades. -- The ICIS database is updated daily. ¶B. (SBU) Watchlist and Information Sharing: -- ROK government and law enforcement agencies issue name-based lookouts that are integrated into ICIS. -- ICIS contains name-based lookouts for deportees and immigration violators, terrorist lookouts, and criminal wants and warrants. -- Foreign countries that are interested in individuals traveling through, into, or out of the ROK can request that the appropriate ROK agency place a lookout in ICIS. There is no systematic inclusion of international watchlists such as Interpol or TSA No Fly lists. All requests are reviewed and included on a case-by-case basis. -- According to the KIB, there are currently no watchlist agreements in place. ¶C. (SBU) Biometrics: -- The ROK does not currently employ any biometric systems at its POEs. The KIB recently installed a Machine Readable Passport system that is capable of scanning the image of the biographic page of the passport, maintaining entry and exit records, and automatically cross-checking the biographic information with ICIS. -- The ROK does not currently employ any biometric technologies, but has plans to develop biometric systems using face, fingerprint, and iris recognition in the future. -- Currently, the ROK uses a machine readable passport. The KIB plans to install a Multi-Identifying System for their new biometric passport in 2007. ¶D. (C) Embassy advises that the ROK would be an appropriate partner for increased data sharing. The data maintained by the ROK is comprehensive and updated daily and is likely to expand to include biometric data in coming years. The current ad-hoc system for including U.S. and international watchlist data in ICIS is cumbersome. At present, Post shares information on an ad-hoc or informal basis with various ROK government entities. There is no indication that the ROK would inappropriately share or use U.S. watchlist data. VERSHBOW