SINGAPORE — A new BioScreen system that verifies travellers’ identities is proving to be an effective security measure, having cleared more than half a million travellers in a month and detecting people with “adverse records”, such as those trying to enter the country using false identities, the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said.

Since it was launched, travellers have gone through fingerprint checks from 20 April and BioScreen has been progressively rolled out across all land and sea checkpoints, ICA added. The biometric identification system requires all travellers above six years old who are entering and leaving Singapore have to scan their fingerprints as an enhnaced screening measure.

Speaking to the media after a visit to Changi Airport yesterday, Mr Desmond Lee, Senior Minister of State for Home Affairs, said that it was important to leverage on technology to help increase border security, even as it has been kept “tight and vigilant”.

“Over 55 million passengers use this airport or pass through this airport, so it’s a very large number of people, and border security is extremely important in this security climate,” he said.

A successful trial of the system was carried out at Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal last year, and BioScreen was implemented in April this year at other checkpoints such as the passenger halls at the Woodlands and Tuas checkpoints, followed by Changi Airport’s manned immigration counters.

Singapore citizens and residents who use the enhanced Immigration Automated Clearance System or automated clearance lanes for departure and arrival will not be affected by BioScreen.

ICA officers told TODAY that travellers were initially surprised at having to scan their thumbprints but have been mostly understanding and cooperative.

Inspector Mohamed Asik, 30, team leader for ICA’s Airport Command, said: “After we explain to them that we have to do this due to additional security measures, they turn out to be more cooperative.

“We also deploy officers to guide travellers (on how) to place their thumbs on the fingerprint scanners, and this reduces the time of (each) transaction as well.”