Automated Biometric Identification System

The Automated Biometric Identification System (IDENT) is a Department of Homeland Security system for the storage and processing of biometric and limited biographic information for DHS national security, law enforcement, immigration, intelligence, and other DHS mission-related functions, and to provide associated testing, training, management reporting, planning and analysis, or other administrative uses.

IDENT was originally developed in 1994 as a biometrics collection and processing system for the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS). Since that time, the INS, as well as numerous other organizations, were subsumed and reorganized into DHS. This change meant that the intended use of IDENT expanded beyond that for which it was initially designed. Today, IDENT is the primary DHS-wide system for the biometric identification and verification of individuals encountered in DHS mission-related processes. IDENT is primarily a back-end system that conducts identification or verification services on behalf of numerous government programs that collect biometric and associated biographic data as part of their mission. These government programs are essentially “users” of IDENT biometric identification and verification services.

Source
Privacy Impact Assessment for the Automated Biometric Identification System (IDENT) (July 31, 2006).