DOJ Taps NTT DATA to Improve Federal Reporting for Firearm Background Checks

The Department of Justice has awarded NTT Data a contract to build a case management system designed to improve the federal reporting function of the National Instant Criminal Background Check System.

NICS is operated by the FBI and used by gun shop owners, pawn shop dealers and retailers to determine if a person can legally purchase firearms. Authorized sellers can access NICS by phone 17 hours a day, seven days a week.

The technology to be developed under the DOJ contract will synchronize disparate data from key federal systems for a better view of criminal histories, NTT Data said.

The Japanese company will adopt a tailored Agile DevSecOps approach to accelerate tech implementation and deliver disposition and prohibitor reporting service capabilities within 12 months.

In a statement, Tammy McChain, senior vice president of NTT Data’s federal health and civilian business, said her company looks forward to providing the DOJ with more accurate, real-time data correlated with relevant government offices, courts and law enforcement agencies.

Work on the case management system was initiated by the DOJ’s FixNICS Working Group, a collaboration between the executive and judicial branches aimed at improving firearm background checks.

NTT Data has partnered with the DOJ for various system enhancement projects.

In May, the company announced that it will be working with Thomson Reuters to modernize the DOJ’s Executive Office for Immigration Review Courts and Appeals System.