Digitalisation and identity management in the asylum procedure in Europe , Date: 2020.10.12, format: Report, area: Authority

As part of the German EU Council Presidency, the BAMF organised a conference on 7 October 2020 dealing with the topics of "Digitalisation in the asylum procedure, speech biometrics and name transcription".

The conference focused in particular on exchanges on the use of innovative digital methods and tools in asylum, and on the promotion of European cooperation in this area.

The first session of the event addressed speech and dialect recognition, as well as name transcription. The aim of the measures is to further reinforce national and international security. It is to be ensured in particular that missing or counterfeit identity documents cannot lead to persons who pose a threat being able to enter the country undetected. This danger is countered with innovative technical solutions for establishing origin and for identity management. Cooperation at European level in this area is also essential.

Identity management receives major support from the transcription of names into a consistent script. In order to harmonise methods for spelling Arabic names, the BAMF is currently developing a web-based transcription service (TKS) for use by all authorities which converts Arabic names into a consistent Latin script and is to be used as soon as those entering the country make their first contact with the authorities. TKS is to be made available to authorities throughout Europe in order to ensure that the data in the various migration databases are of high quality.

One way of establishing applicants’ nationality is through language and dialect recognition. The BAMF is planning a pilot project with several European countries in which the exchange and analysis of voice recordings is to be tested. The aim of the project is to establish and test a common process for language recognition and speech analysis. The intention is for it to be possible to make the new solution available in the long term to Member States and authorities of the European Union, as well as to partner countries.

Two men stand behind a counter. Presenter Lukas Tajak with Kausik Munsi, Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at the Federal Office Source: BAMF