• NIST: On-card fingerprint match is secure, speedy

    HSPD 12 mandates that by this fall most federal employees and contractors will be using federally approved PIV cards to authenticate their identity when seeking entrance to federal facilities; NIST tests two alternative authentication methods (we like the “match-on-card” approach)

  • DHS grants Maine Real ID extension

    Unless a state received a Real ID extension from DHS, then the driver’s licenses it issues to its residents must be Real ID-compliant by 11 May or state residents will not be able to board a plane, open a bank account, or enter a federal building; Maine’s application was not to DHS’s liking, so the state missed the extension application deadline; DHS decided to give the state 48 hours to comply

  • "Fingerprints are forever": Battle over using biometrics in school continues

    Arizona has been a battleground for the use of biometric technology in schools; citing the threat of identity theft, senators pass measure requiring parental consent before any biometric information is collected from children; “Fingerprints are forever,” says sponsoring senator

  • As Real ID kicks in 11 May, some states may be left in limbo

    Beginning 11 May, individuals who want to enter federal buildings or board a plane will have to show a state driver’s license complying with the Real ID Act — unless their state has been granted an extension by DHS (the extension is until 11 October 2009); Maine and South Carolina do not have Real ID-compliant licenses, and they are yet to apply for an extension (the deadline is today)

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  • Security concerns over U.S. decision to outsource e-passport production

    The U.S. Government Printing Office’s (GPO) decision to outsource the production of the new e-passports to companies in Europe and Thailand makes legislators, security experts worry; Thailand is an unstable country with a tradition of corruption and rising Islamic terrorism problem; the Dutch company which operates the Thai e-passport production facilities filed court papers in October 2007 charging that China had stolen the company’s patented technology for e-passport chips

  • JFK now requires 10 fingerprints from visitors

    New York’s JFK joins a list of other U.S. airports now requiring non-U.S. citizens to submit ten fingerprints; on a typical day, JFK sees almost 14,400 international visitors complete US‑VISIT biometric procedures

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  • New U.K. approach to national ID card scheme

    Technology is just one issue in the U.K. government’s overhaul of controversial identity plan

  • Fingerprint scheme at Heathrow's Terminal 5 challenged

    BAA’s plan to require fingerprints from both international and domestic passengers who use the terminal may violate the U.K. Data Protection Act; Thursday’s opening of the £4.3 billion terminal may be delayed

  • DHS insists on states' complaince with Real ID

    DHS wants all states to incorporate biometric and RFID technologies into the driver licenses they issue — or risk having citizens of states which fail to do so being barred from flights and federal buildings; the states argue that they do not have the funds to implement this mandate; DHS says it may be willing to be flexible, but at the end states would have to comply

  • Three more EU members on way to visa waver status

    The United States, continuing to defy the EU, grants pre-visa waiver status to Slovakia, Hungary, and Lithuania; EU wants to negotiate a package deal on behalf of the twelve new EU members, while U.S. prefers to deal with each country on its security merits

  • More than 4 million credit, debit cards exposed in security breach

    Supermarket chain Hannaford Bros., with 270 stores nationwide, says that a security breach in its system exposed 4.2 million credit and debit cards; 1,800 cases of fraudulent use already detected

  • Taking stock of UKVisas program

    UKVisas is part of the U.K. government’s e-border program - and to date has moved faster than other components of the scheme; the program wins a technology award, which is a good occasion to see where the program stands today

  • Growth of facial recognition biometrics, II

    Some twenty states already use facial recognition in their DMVs, and more states are planning to do so; the federal government incorporates facial recognition in some of its important initiatives; privacy advocates are concerned that the technology is becoming too pervasive

  • MI5 seeks powers to trawl records in new terror hunt

    As part of the Brown government’s new counterterrorism strategy, which places emphasis on thwarting a cyber-attack on the United Kingdom, MI5 seeks total access to commuters’ travel records to help them meet the threat

  • Growth of facial recognition biometrics, I

    More and more private and government organizations turn to facial recognition biometric (just think DMVs), but privacy concerns slow broader adoption