4,700 foreigners denied entry to Korea By Jung Min-ho

The Korean government has used biotechnology to detect more than 4,700 attempts at illegal entry over the past two years, the Ministry of Justice said Monday.

According to the ministry, 4,790 foreigners were denied entry after trying to conceal their real identity between December 2015 and the end of 2017.

The ministry used a technology called “biometrics analysis system for experts,” which can identify whether people are who they claim to be, based on their facial pictures and fingerprints.

The ministry had obtained the data when the people had previously entered Korea.

Most of them were deported after illegally staying in Korea; some were on wanted lists for alleged crimes.

The ministry adopted the system to block foreigners from re-entering Korea by illegal means, such as changing their name or nationality.

Many obtain the citizenship of countries such as the Marshall Islands, a sprawling chain of islands and coral atolls in the central Pacific Ocean, where they can do so easily.

Ahead of the Pyeongchang Olympics, which will begin in about two weeks, the ministry is strengthening border security in cooperation with the National Intelligence Service.

Source:koreatimes.co.kr