With the Taliban having now taken over Afghanistan, there are growing concerns about how it might use the data from the huge biometrics programme that has been left behind. An extensive database of people in Afghanistan was built up during the previous regime, but the quick transition has meant much of it remains in tact. The US first established a programme to collect the fingerprints, iris scans and facial images of Afghan national security forces after testing prototypes of the system in 2002. The programme's initial goal was to keep criminals and Taliban insurgents from infiltrating the army and police force. To collect and store this data, the US Department of Defense launched its Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS) in 2004.