Customs new state-of-the-art technology means outbound inspectors will soon be inhabiting an almost paperless environment, documenting traveler data on their handheld PDAs, or Personal Digital Assistants, instead of the multi-layered forms that made the process creep along in the past. The hand-held computer allows inspectors to document secondary inspections, as well as incidents and personal searches. Inspectors can also use the PDA to help travelers comply with their responsibilities when it's time for them to read and sign their currency declarations.

With a single click
Inspectors log into their encrypted PDAs and collect traveler data throughout their shifts. At the end of their shifts, they cradle their PDA and synchronize the collected data to the CADIS Management Center, a web-based application residing on the Customs Intranet. If inspectors want to view, edit, or add to their data, they can get into the CADIS Management Center on any Customs computer at any location and send the completed e-forms straight to the Treasury Enforcement Communications System (TECS) with a single click of a button. The PDA is also built to anticipate future needs - it runs on PocketPC-based applications, so its capabilities are almost limitless.

Customs inspector collects traveler data using handheld computer.

"Inspectors are increasingly demonstrating a need for fast, accurate information on the move," explains Dave Bello, Program Officer, OFO. "The events of 9/11 have heightened that need. This is Customs first step in making the mobile inspector truly mobile."

Inspector Mather points to another benefit: "A passenger can read the text or listen to an audio file of the Currency Reporting Publication (CP 503) and fill out his or her currency declaration in one of 20 different languages." Although inspectors still carry hard copies of the currency declarations in case a passenger requests a copy, they no longer have to worry about keeping track of the forms once they've been signed. If a case goes to court and hard copies of the currency declaration are requested, inspectors can simply print them out.

Passport Scanning
The new PDA hold other attractions as well. Inspectors can scan passport information now with cabled-passport readers - gone are the days when the only way to encode that information was to enter it manually. Every passport contains a machine-readable zone, which also the passport information to be scanned and automatically placed into the correct fields on the PDA's screens. The inspectors can then verify the accuracy of the information before moving to the next screen. If the passport can't be scanned for some reason, the inspector can fill in the data manually. The device also includes drop down lists and choice boxes that make the job easier and almost error-proof. The Personal Digital Assistant won't let the inspector move on to the next screen, for example, until information is entered into every required field.

"Once inspectors are up to speed and comfortable with the PDAs, it will definitely save time especially in the office," Mather explains. "So far the response has been very positive. Of course this is a testing phase. We're still in the tweaking process, and adding oour input for further development."

And the passengers? "We have had a good response from them as well," Mather says. "They like the idea of us using high tech equipment. But, of course, there are still some passengers that don't understand how to use it. Inspectors are busy learning how to say things like "scroll down" in a number of different languages. The language barrier poses some difficulties, and until we learn the right phrases in all the right languages, we're really just showing them the process."

Next stop - Miami and Detroit
The week of January 7, 2002, Customs inspectors at JFK got an opportunity to put this system to the test. When Customs finishes testing the prototypes at the end of March, officials will decide where to send the technology next. The goal is to have CADIS in every Customs port in the near future. Although inspectors at JFK and Miami were the first to get the new PDA, outbound inspectors in Detroit are getting the technology next: four PDA and three cabled-passport readers. They will add their suggestions and the feasibility of these devices being used throughout Customs.

"We have come up with some ideas to enhance the devices," says Mather. "One idea is to have a menu which will incorporate a telephone listing of important numbers, such as air lines. It would save the inspectors time, because instead of having to call the office first to find out the number, they could have it readily available."

According to Mather, the ideal device would be one inspectors could use to transmit data back and forth to one another, as well as to other agencies: "It would be nice to be able to view a photograph and have information and a description of an individual on a 'watch list' compiled by another agency, the FBI, for example."

Customs implementation of the CADIS program is part of a growing trend in law enforcement to develop and employ sophisticated technical innovation. CADIS provides outbound inspectors with a fully integrated mobile data system, which, in turn, provides secure querying, messaging, and data transfer capabilities to all mobile users - a small step for the OFO, a giant step for Customs and the traveling public.

"These PDAs," says Bello, "are going to be a valuable addition to our current enforcement tools. Someday soon, we'll have inspectors performing subject queries, viewing traveler history in TECS, and checking for stolen vehicles on their PDAs. Customs goal is to provide every inspector with 'anytime, anywhere' access to its systems. This is just phase one. Stay tuned, there's more to come."