The government is planning to recruit 10,000 volunteers to have
fingerprint and iris scans to test whether biometric technology
will be an economical option for ID cards.
The success of the government's plans to introduce electronic ID
cards will hinge on the ability of the Passport Service to cheaply
and quickly record millions of fingerprint, iris and facial
images.
The practicality of the biometric technology behind the cards will
be tested in a six-month trial starting this month which will
involve 10,000 volunteers, four testing stations and a mobile
biometric reader.
The trial is one of 12 wide-ranging projects by the Passport
Service that will pave the way for the introduction of electronic
identity cards from 2008.
The trial involves data matching programmes which will allow
officials to check the personal details of passport applicants with
records held by other government departments and private credit
reference agencies, and to compare photographic images of
applicants with "watch-lists" of known criminals.
The Passport Service has awarded Schlumberger Sema the contract to
test the biometric technology. The project will assess whether
taking biometric readings of passport applicants can be taken
quickly and cheaply.
The Home Office last year disclosed plans to raise the cost of
passports to £77 and driving licences to £73 to cover the cost of
the technology. It emerged last week it is also considering plans
to reduce the validity of cards from 10 to five years - pushing up
costs for the public further.
"This excise will show whether we can record biometrics in
reasonable numbers. We have to learn from this to inform the design
of the next generation of passports and identity cards," said
Bernard Herdan, chief executive of the Passport Service.
Ten thousand volunteers will have their pictures taken by a digital
camera which doubles as an iris scanner, and will have their
fingerprints electronically scanned in a specially designed
biometric booth.
Some 2,000 of the volunteers will be selected to provided a
representative sample of the UK population, 1,000 will be taken
from groups representing people with disabilities and 7,000 will be
selected randomly from people near the four test sites.
The booths will be at Newcastle town hall, a DVLA site, a post
office and a passport office. The passport office will also test a
mobile scanner to record the biometric signatures of elderly or
disable people who may not be able to visit a testing centre.
"At present, issuing passports or driving licences does not require
the physical presence of the applicant, but clearly iris pattern
and fingerprint biometrics will demand this," said Geoff Llewllyn,
director of strategy and government relations at Schlum-berger
Sema. "This means that any full-scale process to issue biometric
cards will have to be designed to enable large numbers of
individuals to flow smoothly through an enrolment process."
The trial will compare three different biometric technologies and
will assess whether they produce an acceptable number of false
matches - given that even a small percentage of false readings in a
population of more than 50 million could cause problems.
Schlumberger plans to compare the biometric data against 100,000
iris scans and half a million fingerprint records obtained from the
US to assess the likelihood of false matches.
The security and accuracy of biometric technology could have a
dramatic impact on the feasibility and cost of the scheme, said
Llewllyn.
The Passport Office said it was anxious not to become locked into
one supplier, a factor that would require the development of
international biometric standards.
Herdan said that standards for encryption and the digital
photographs had already been agreed. He said he was confident that
a European standard for recording biometric information would
follow.
Key projects in the ID card feasibility
study
Biometric passport Develop a passport book that
stores biometric details of the passport holder. A chip will
contain a digitised photograph to improve security. Currently
in prototype. Six-month roll-out due in 2005
Electronic identity checks UK Passport Service
will verify the identity of passport holders by checking their
details against government and commercial databases. A private
sector partner will make the ID checking service available to other
departments. On trial from October 2003 to October 2004. Ready
for full roll-out in 2005 and 2006
Facial recognition checks of passport holders
UKPS is running trials to match electronic pictures of passport
holders against "watch-lists" containing facial images of
terrorists or criminals. Trials are under way now to
identify technical solutions. Pilot by the end of 2004
Interviews for first-time applicants of
passports UKPS will have the power to require people to
attend a personal interview to deter fraud and illegal immigration.
It will be used to verify the identity of ID card holders.
Feasibility study in 2004. Possible implementation in
2006
Reduce validity of passport from 10 to five
years This will reflect the anticipated life of the
biometric chip in a passport or an ID card. Will enable chips to
be upgraded more rapidly to deter counterfeiters. Could mean
higher costs for passport holders. Feasibility study by
February 2004. No decision taken
Online checks of births, deaths and marriage
certificates UKPS will check applicant's details against
birth, deaths and marriage databases at the ONS to
check applicants' authenticity. Online from 2006/2007
Biometric passport card Credit card-sized
passport with biometric chip to be developed as a prototype ID
card. Study to determine technical solutions and business case
by mid-2004
Biometric trials 10,000 volunteers will
test fingerprint, facial and iris recognition. Due to start in
February 2004. Complete by July 2004
Electronic links to police, immigration services to
exchange data on lost, stolen and recovered passports UKPS
will build electronic links to police, the Foreign Office, and
Interpol. Project will underpin plans for ID card. Went live in
December 2003. Will roll-out in 2004/2005
Key objectives
To answer the following:
- How long does it take to process biometric information?
- How many false positive or failed registrations will there
be?
- Which biometric technology is most acceptable to the
public?
- Which technology is most secure?
ID card lessons
US Department of Defence One of the largest
biometric smartcard implementations with very high levels of
security, but there have been concerns over the number of false
matches. Stories abound about male soldiers being recognised as
female service staff and vice versa. A lack of global standards is
a cause for concern at the Department of Defence.
Moscow Social Card Ingenious ID card designed
to administer a complex system of social benefits in Moscow.
Russian engineers devised innovative solutions working around gaps
in resources and technology. The UK could learn from the
scheme.
Home Affairs National ID System, South Africa
This system was introduced to combat widespread benefit fraud, but
its specification has grown enormously. There are plans for the
system to hold driving licences, details of convictions, traffic
offences and housing details, but there are difficulties because of
the complexity of the system.
Iraq Aims to dramatically reduce
administration costs of UN oil for food programme.
Source: Parliamentary IT Committee meeting, January
2004