Interpol reports low use of stolen passport database
26 Apr 201406:14 AM
Interpol reports low use of stolen passport database

Fewer than 10 countries in the world systematically use an Interpol database to verify whether a passenger is flying with stolen documents, the organisation’s secretary general said Friday.


The Stolen or Lost Travel Documents (SLTD) database contains 42 million records from 167 countries, Ronald Noble told a press conference.


But of the 1.2 billion passengers who flew internationally in 2013, at least one in three were never checked in the system, he said.


The number has come to light after the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, which was carrying two Iranian men who boarded with stolen passports.
It was later reported that they were illegal migrants.


“Most governments unfortunately have not yet taken their responsibilities seriously,” Noble said.


“Stolen or lost travel documents are in the hands of too many international terrorists,” he added.


The executive director of the UN’s counterterrorism committee said that scanning passports takes no more than three seconds.


“We’ve encouraged member states to use consistently the tools available to strengthen border management and security,” Jean-Paul Laborde said, speaking at the same press conference.