Biometric Identity Services

THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) ONLY. This RFI is for planning purposes only and shall not be construed as an obligation on the part of the Government. This is NOT a Request for Quotations or Proposals. No solicitation document exists, and a formal solicitation may or may not be issued by the Government as a result of the responses received to this RFI. The Government will not pay for any response or demonstration expenses. Interested parties are responsible for adequately marking proprietary or competition sensitive information contained in their response. Responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. Those who respond to this RFI should not anticipate feedback concerning their submission. All submissions will become the property of the Government and will not be returned. Responding to the RFI is completely voluntary and will not enhance or adversely affect responses to any resulting solicitation if such solicitation is issued at a later date. There is no competitive advantage gained by any of the respondents to this RFI. DESCRIPTION The Office of Biometric Identity Management (OBIM) is the Congressionally designated lead entity within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), responsible for biometric identity services. The capability to match, store, share, and analyze biometric identity information includes OBIM’s operation, maintenance, and improvement of the central DHS biometric repository which is currently the Automated Biometric Identification System (IDENT), and in the future the in-development replacement system for IDENT, Homeland Advanced Recognition Technology (HART). OBIM provides DHS and its mission partners with biometric identity services that enable national security and public safety decision making. As one of the world’s largest biometric repositories, OBIM’s biometric system contains the identities of over 300 million individuals. OBIM Identity Operations Division (IOD) is seeking professional services to provide biometric examiners, multimodal biometric examiners and identity services to support OBIM with multimodal biometric accuracy and identity services expertise for the Biometric Accuracy Analysis Team (BAAT) and Biometric Support Center (BSC), to support OBIM’s current and future biometric capabilities. OBIM’s biometric system currently utilizes fingerprints, latent prints, face, and iris to support its biometric mission needs but expects the capabilities to expand to meet stakeholder needs in the future. The contractor shall provide multimodal biometric accuracy and identity services expertise to include: • Biometric examination services • Identity management capabilities and biometric support services • Biometric accuracy and quality analysis • Data analysis Government provided software will be used in support of this work effort. Software used may change during the course of the contract; however, the type of work will remain the same. The contractor shall provide multimodal biometric accuracy and identity services expertise to include: Biometric examination services for all modalities Identity management capabilities and biometric support services Biometric accuracy and quality analysis Data analysis In addition, as part of this effort, the Government expects: Innovative approaches to staffing in order to ensure resources are applied in the most efficient manner Application of industry best practices across all tasks Collaboration across BAAT and BSC teams to ensure mission needs are met and opportunities for efficiency improvements are identified The contractor is responsible for providing oversight of the work performed in accordance with the Project Management Plan and for establishing/maintaining a Quality Assurance program. Biometric Examiner and Identity Management Services Although OBIM’s biometric system is very accurate and executes hundreds of thousands of biometric services each day, BSC biometric examiners and analysts are needed to supplement the automated capabilities of the system, respond to stakeholder requests for biometrics identity services, and to maintain and improve the accuracy of the system through identity management tasks and in support of the BAAT accuracy activities. The contractor shall provide qualified personnel to support the Biometric Support Center (BSC) with the following duties: Analyze and compare biometric images to render identity decisions when the automated matchers are unable Resolve candidate lists generated by the automated system when biometrics are searched Prepare reports as needed to support examiner identity decision conclusions Correct biometric capture issues so that future matching is improved Maintain the identities within IDENT/HART through record reviews and analysis of biometric identity conflicts, errors, etc. Support stakeholder biometric service requests for those stakeholders who are not able to execute these requests through automated capabilities Provide subject matter expertise and technical support in support of BSC operations Note: The BSC is not a forensic laboratory; therefore, the scope of this work does not include the handling/processing of physical evidence. Biometric Accuracy and Data Analysis Additionally, the contractor shall provide data accuracy and quality analysis to manage the accuracy of biometric identity information. The government is expecting support for the Biometric Accuracy Analysis Team (BAAT) which is dedicated to the monitoring, analysis, reporting, and correction of the biometric data within the HART database. The contractor is responsible for providing data integrity analysis, reporting services and related analysis services, as required, for OBIM’s IOD. Support includes technical subject matter expertise, project management services as well as audit recommendations and advice on corrective actions and guidance to the field. The contractor shall also provide statistical analysis of system data to support requirements identification. The contractor shall provide qualified personnel to support the Biometric Accuracy Analysis Team (BAAT) with the following duties: Conducting comprehensive testing of biometric data to assess accuracy and quality of stakeholder biometric data, vendor matchers, presentation attack detection tools, and data quality software Supporting the development, implementation and automation of biometric programs Collaborate within OBIM and with stakeholders to ensure alignment with operational goals and standards to improve biometric match response accuracy Create statistically representative biometric data cohorts as authorized to support mission needs Perform ad hoc root-cause-analysis of biometric based anomalies. Enhance existing processes, infrastructure, and architecture to better support operations Support the maintenance and production of Microsoft Power Platform based applications Ensure adherence to record keeping protocols by leveraging existing methods and applying authorized process improvements methods Publish impactful findings to support best practices throughout OBIM and its stakeholders Attend conferences and meetings related to biometric knowledge sharing to support OBIM Establish metrics to enable a notification-based dashboard to support system monitoring Task Order Management The government expects: The establishment and maintenance of a roadmap that aligns the efforts of the BSC and BAAT with the broader Systems Business Operations Branch. The design, development, and integration of Microsoft Power Platform solutions, existing Excel reports, and the Pyramid Business Intelligence application to seamlessly dashboard key performance metrics. Routine coordination and planning between Key Personnel; Biometric Examiner Lead and Biometric Information Technology/Identification Systems Specialist to establish seamless methods of documenting, tracking, reporting, and supporting contractor activity. Ensure biometric examiner contractors are present and capable to sufficiently support specific BSC operations 24/7/365. INDUSTRY DISCUSSIONS DHS representatives may or may not choose to meet with potential offerors. Such discussions would only be intended to get further clarification of potential capability to meet the requirements. REQUEST FOR INFORMATION RESPONSE DHS is asking respondents to submit a Capability Statement responsive to the requirements described within Attachment I - SOW - Biometric Identity Services - Draft. DHS appreciates responses from all capable and qualified sources. Responders are requested to describe in clear and concise language their company's capabilities to meet the requirements of this RFI. Capabilities statements shall not exceed ten (10) pages and general formatting shall be done using single-spaced 12-point font on letter sized (8.5 x 11) pages and submitted as a pdf or Word document. Each response shall contain a Cover Page identifying: RFI Title Name and Address of Company Point of Contact (Name, Title, Email, and Phone) Website Address Business size and Type of Ownership (i.e. 8A, Other than Small, Small, Small Disadvantaged, Woman-owned, Hub-zone, Service-Disabled Veteran, etc.) Contract Vehicle and Contract Number where services are available. i.e. GSA MAS Schedule, GSA Alliant 2, GSA Alliant 3, NASA SEWP, GSA OASIS+, etc. Also, include the applicable North America Industry Classification System (NAICS) code. The Government is considering NAICS Code 541990 Company overview Commercial or non-Commercial Service Description of the products or services a company provides Statement and assurance about what the client can expect from your company Each response shall include a Capability Statement discussing the company’s capabilities to meet the requirements described within attached draft Statement of Work and provide an answer to questions below: 1. Describe your organization’s experience providing biometric examination, identity-management, and biometric data-quality services in large-scale, mission-critical environments. 2. Identify the biometric modalities for which your organization currently provides qualified examiner services, including fingerprint, latent print, face, iris, and any additional modalities. 3. Describe your experience supporting biometric operations that require continuous or 24/7/365 coverage, time-sensitive adjudications, and strict service-level agreements. 4. Describe your ability to recruit, retain, and deploy qualified biometric examiners who meet the SOW’s minimum experience requirements, including latent print examiners and personnel qualified in multiple modalities. 5. What is the current availability of personnel with: Fingerprint comparison experience Latent print examination experience Facial-comparison experience Iris-comparison experience Multimodal biometric examination experience Biometric identity-management and record-resolution experience 6. Describe the certifications, training programs, proficiency testing, and continuing education your organization uses to maintain examiner qualifications 7. Describe your approach for cross-training examiners across fingerprint, face, iris, and identity-management activities while ensuring personnel only perform functions for which they are qualified. 8. What efficiencies in examiner operations can you recommend? 9. Describe your approach to managing a combined operational and analytical workforce supporting both BSC and BAAT functions. 10. Describe your organization’s experience conducting biometric accuracy testing, matcher evaluations, threshold analysis, statistically representative cohort development, and biometric-data-quality analysis. 11. Describe your capabilities and experience with the analytical, data, and technical environment referenced in the SOW, including Python, R, SQL, Oracle, PostgreSQL, AWS GovCloud, Security-Enhanced Red Hat Enterprise Linux, GitLab, Jira, Confluence, and Pyramid Analytics. 12. Describe your experien…