A NEW security system which targets cigarette smuggling has been unveiled. The World Customs Organisation (WCO) and the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) have agreed on a procedure for the exchange of data to gain a better global picture of illicit cigarette trafficking, according to information revealed by Deloitte & Touche. Information relating to seizures of smuggled cigarettes in the European Union (EU) will be transferred automatically from the OLAF Anti-Fraud Information System (AFIS)/ Ciginfo to the WCO Customs Enforcement Network system (CEN). This is expected to improve the timeliness of global trend analysis in the WCO’s 162 member countries. Customs administrations around the world reported the seizure of 2.6 billion smuggled cigarettes to the WCO during 2003. Customs services around the world now have access to the most current information on methods of concealment and other modus operandi being used by cigarette traffickers in Europe.
