Should Japan Shift to 10-Finger Immigration Screening?

The U.S. government wants Japan to do just that:

Robert Mocny, head of the US-Visit Program of the department, told Kyodo News the U.S. government is “willing to talk with the government of Japan to follow what we’ve done,” referring to the 10-finger system the United States has launched at some airports since November.

Mocny stopped short of saying by when Japan should upgrade the biometrics screening from the current method, just introduced in November, of taking the fingerprints of two fingers and photographing the face of an arriving visitor.

“Accuracy is one reason why we’re doing this,” the U.S. official said. People might be identified erroneously with two index fingerprints at airports and other ports of entry and temporarily detained without good reason but taking eight more fingerprints will help reduce such risks, Mocny said.

Mocny defended the current screening arrangement despite complaints by some, saying, “It’s important to the people of America and the people who visit America that they have a safe and law-abiding society.”