Addressing Significant Vulnerabilities in the Department of State's Passport Issuance ProcessA genuine U.S. passport is a vital document, permitting its owner to travel freely into and out of the United States, prove U.S. citizenship, obtain further identification documents, and set up bank accounts, among other things. Since May 2005, there have been several reports identifying significant fraud vulnerabilities in the passport issuance process. This report: (1) describes recent work on passport fraud; and (2) summarizes actions the Department of State has indicated it is taking to address the fraud vulnerabilities that have been identified. |
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