Because it is the second most popular destination for immigrants entering Europe, Italy is planning to introduce fingerprinting “hotspots” as soon as migrants reach rescue boats in the Mediterranean. These floating fingerprint centers will help more efficiently process the thousands of immigrants coming into the country, most of whom do not want to register in Italy and use the country only as a port of entry.

For fear of becoming a temporary migrant camping site due to Austria’s increased rules against immigrants, Italy is working to tighten its security and process those seeking asylum more quickly. While public protests have opposed the fingerprinting of migrants, Italy feels that to secure its borders and prevent smuggling, floating fingerprint hotspots are the solution.