Current economic and cultural values and trends emphasize a global, borderless world in which national economies and cultures are enhanced by interactions that are mutually beneficial. These trends, however, have also fostered violent conflicts rooted in cultural and ideological differences as well as the activities of transnational criminal enterprises. This has led to an increase in border security measures by governments committed to protecting their citizens from those who would cross their borders to do harm to their citizens and violate their laws. At the same time, public and private security agencies have increased their cooperation with one another through the sharing of intelligence information and a reduction in barriers to communication and the cooperative deployment of resources. Border security technologies have focused on identifying individuals, primarily through biometric means, who have prior records of criminal or suspicious activity. These security measures have caused political debates about the intrusiveness of various measures and their implications for privacy and civil rights. The ultimate debate, however, may be about how to balance the interests of global commerce with the common interest of states to provide security for their citizens and territories. 20 notes and 28 references