Editorial: Virtual guard could boost border security

It remains to be seen if an avatar will work at expediting cross-border travel times.

A pilot program taking place in Arizona could be expanded to this area if it proves effective.

At the Nogales, Ariz., border crossing, a virtual border guard is being tested as a mechanism handling pre-approved, low-risk travelers as they go through dedicated lanes and kiosks.

Since 9/11, increased security at ports of entry have slowed commerce and pedestrian traffic. U.S. Customs and Border Protection has been seeking ways, using scientific technology, to speed the flow while still keeping our borders safe.

New technologies and other programs to add expediency, such as special traffic lanes, are also in place at the El Paso port of entry.

The avatar was developed by researchers at the University of Arizona. It makes people answer questions and it then sends cues to a CBP officer via an iPad tablet. The avatar uses speech recognition and voice anomaly-detection software in screening those border crossers signed up in the CBP's Trusted Travel Program.

"When an avatar was added, people treated it almost like a person, at times even referring to it as 'sir,'" said Aaron Elkins, a University of Arizona researcher with the project.

Voice detection is one method of identifying a person. Among other methods available are eye scans and thumb prints.

We are finding ways to secure cargo in warehouses so it can move unimpeded from Mexico to the U.S.

Already in operation in other walks of life are eye scans or hand prints used in place of keys to open locked doors.

The object is to find a low-cost and fail-safe method of positively identifying a person.

It's our right to know who's in our country. A person may be able to fake a passport, but is highly unlikely to make it past a voice detector.

Thousands of pedestrians cross back and forth between Mexico and the United States at the El Paso border crossing daily. It is important that we be able to identify and stop those crossing illegally, while at the same time efficiently process legal crossers.

If the Nogales avatar works out, it may be one of the answers to help our present need for more "manpower" at border crossings.

— Las Cruces Sun-News