"Digital identity is essential for a nation's fundamental infrastructure" - ID4Africa 2025
FBI Awards Leidos $129.7 Million Contract for CJIS Biometric Services
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has selected Leidos, a prominent technology solutions provider, for a five and a half-year contract worth $129.7 million. This agreement aims to support the FBI's Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) Division's Fingerprint Analysis Support Team (FAST) Biometric Services program as part of the agency's efforts to modernize and enhance its biometric identification capabilities.
Under the terms of the contract, Leidos will be tasked with sustaining the FBI's fingerprint biometric services under the CJIS Division. Since 2018, the company has been collaborating with CJIS to develop and continually integrate the Next Generation Identification (NGI) system, a technologically advanced biometric identification platform utilized by the FBI, as well as state, local, federal, and tribal authorities. The NGI system stands as the world's largest and most efficient electronic repository of biometric and criminal history information, incorporating innovative features such as the Repository for Individuals of Special Concern and the Rap Back service, which alerts authorized users of any criminal activity by individuals in public trust positions.
Leidos' involvement in this contract underlines their role as a key partner in advancing federal law enforcement technology infrastructure. Their strategy has centered on agile methodologies and development operations, promoting close collaboration with the CJIS test, verification, and validation teams. This collaboration model, initiated in 2016, has nurtured a strong working relationship that facilitates continuous improvements and the integration of biometric services under the NGI system.
In essence, the awarded contract enables Leidos to continue the development, modernization, and maintenance of the NGI system and associated fingerprint analysis services, thereby bolstering law enforcement's biometric identification capabilities across multiple jurisdictions.
In the context of the awarded contract, Leidos' role will involve utilizing their expertise in technology to sustain the FBI's fingerprint biometric services, integrating artificial-intelligence methods into the Next Generation Identification (NGI) system. This collaboration with the FBI's CJIS Division in finance will enable the continuous development, modernization, and maintenance of the NGI system, thereby improving the finance sector's reliance on advanced technology such as artificial-intelligence and augmenting the industry's biometric identification capabilities.
