IDN Volume 2019

VOLUME 7 – NO 1 / JANUARY 2019

Malta to Upgrade ePassport

Vietnam to Introduce ePassport Vietnam’s Ministry of Public Security is set to introduce the country’s first ePassport by 2020. The Ministry says the new travel document will facilitate faster, more convenient and more secure border crossings.

Current Maltese ePassport design introduced in 2008.

The Maltese government has announced plans to launch an upgraded ePassport by the end of 2019. The new travel document will incorporate cutting-edge technology and additional security features.

According to the government, although the current passport is highly secure and conforms to the highest international standards, the new travel document will have additional security features which will further prevent the counterfeiting of the document.

Amongst other features, biographic data will be laser engraved on a polycarbonate card which will be incorporated into the new passport. Apart from this, the new travel document will be printed on highly sensitive secure paper that will include advanced security features and techniques such as UV and visible fibres, high quality cylinder mould watermarks and security thread. The passport will also have biometric features and an embedded chip used to verify the person’s identity.

The inner pages of the new document will depict imagery of renowned Maltese landmarks and cultural heritage. The intricate imagery, combined with a highly sophisticated layer of security features, will be printed in secure ink primarily designed to secure government-issued documents.

www.securedocumentnews.com

Commenting on the planned launch, Malta’s Parliamentary Secretary for Reforms, Citizenship and Simplification of Administrative Procedures, Julia Farrugia Portelli said: ‘the Maltese people are very keen on travelling and are fond of culture and heritage too; three elements that will be captured in the new Maltese passport, which will gradually make its way later this year.’

The gradual introduction of the new passport will take place over a number of years starting towards the end of 2019.

The new travel document will be issued on application for a new passport or upon renewal. Existing passports in circulation will remain valid until their expiry date. Upon renewal, the new passport will be issued for no additional charge.

Malta’s passport issuing authority, Identity Malta Agency, has reiterated its commitment towards making its services more accessible. Following a series of meetings with the Commission for the Rights of Persons with Disability (CRPD) and the Foundation for ICT Accessibility (FITA), Identity Malta said it intends to facilitate the use of Maltese passports for the visually impaired, which will result in a higher independence.

The Ministry has published the draft law on the entry and exit of Vietnamese citizens detailing the proposed system, and is currently seeking public feedback. While the government had previously approved the project to produce and issue ePassports, there was no legal document regulating the process. The bill, with 39 articles arranged into seven chapters, takes effect in July 2020 provided it is adopted by the National Assembly.

The ePassport will be embedded with a microchip that stores the holder’s personal information, fingerprint scans, photo and a digital signature from the issuing agency.

The draft law also seeks to replace the current travel document (giay thong hanh) with temporary passports, which would expire after one year and serve the same purpose as ordinary passports. Temporary passports would be issued in situations when a passport is lost or has expired, and the holder must travel on short notice.

The number of Vietnamese travelling overseas for study, work or tourism has increased rapidly in recent times, from 6.1 million in 2013 to 7.7 million in 2016 and 9.2 million in 2017.

Vietnam’s current passport is a machine-readable document and was introduced in 2005. It is one of the cheapest passports in the world to produce and one of the least protected.

DHS Offers $800,000 for Anti-Forgery Protection of Digital Documents The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) has announced that it is seeking innovative solutions from start-ups to enhance anti-forgery and anti-counterfeiting capabilities for digital documents under S&T’s Silicon Valley Innovation Program (SVIP). Companies participating in SVIP are eligible for up to $800,000 in funding over four phases.

The Request for Proposal (RFP), entitled ‘Preventing Forgery and Counterfeiting of Certificates and Licenses,’ specifically seeks solutions that use blockchain and distributive ledger technology to issue digital documents in a way that prevents fraud, counterfeiting and forgery.

It is open to start-ups and small businesses that have not had a government contract in the past 12 months of more than $1 million

Inside this Issue 1 Malta to Upgrade ePassport

1 Vietnam to Introduce ePassport

2 DHS Offers $800,000 for Anti-Forgery Protection of Digital Documents

2 Ukraine Launches Mobile ID

3 News in Brief 4 Travel and ID Documents: Security Features Revisited

6 Gradient Launches Valida

6 Veridos Presents New Colour Personalisation Technology

7 Company News 8 HSP EMEA

Programme Announced

2 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | MARKET NEWS

and have under 200 employees at the time of application.

S&T SVIP Managing Director Melissa Oh said: ‘by releasing this solicitation, we are asking the innovation community to contribute to this work through the application of commercial solutions to Homeland Security use-cases.’

The request was released in partnership with Customs and Border Protection, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). This is the first SVIP solicitation supporting USCIS use-cases.

The proposed solution must be applicable to at least one of the following: Identity documents for travel; Identity of organisations and organisational delegates;

Tribal identity documents for travel; Citizenship, immigration and employment authorisation; Cross-border oil import tracking; Origin of raw material imports.

‘The broad Homeland Security mission includes the need to issue entitlements, licenses and certifications for a variety of purposes including travel, citizenship, employment eligibility, immigration status and supply chain security,’ said S&T SVIP Technical Director Anil John.

‘Understanding the feasibility and utility of using blockchain and distributive ledger technology for the digital issuance of what are currently paper-based credentials is critical to preventing their loss, destruction, forgery and counterfeiting.’

Ukraine Launches Mobile ID Ukraine’s mobile communications operator Kyivstar has launched Mobile ID, a service designed to provide digital identification for individuals obtaining eServices using a mobile number.

The service is available in 11 major cities including Kyiv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Odesa and Lviv, with a total of 22 open points for issuing mobile ID SIM cards and certificates from an accredited key certification centre of the Ministry of Justice. Individual entrepreneurs, contract subscribers and corporate clients of Kyivstar will be able to receive their mobile ID from any locality in the country.

According to Kyivstar, the large-scale implementation of mobile ID will simplify the provision of services to the population by both government and commercial organisations, eliminating the intermediary link between the source of services and the customer and thus reducing excessive red tape, queues and costs.

Mobile ID will be used to obtain electronic public services such as driver’s licence, car registration, residence registration, income declaration, voting and social assistance, as well as healthcare (medication, access to medical history) and education (access to the website of the educational institution and personal account, distance learning, obtaining certificates). It will also be used in the financial and banking sectors for services such as payments, opening or closing accounts, receiving references, insurance and loans as well as corporate sector (login, VPN, mobility) and for online purchases, auctions and other online-based services.

To connect to Mobile ID, a subscriber will need to visit the certified connection point with an original passport and identification code and replace the SIM card with a Mobile ID enabled card provided by the operator free of charge. The subscriber will then receive a free digital certificate for a period of one year. The cost of using Mobile ID service is already included in the tariff plans with a monthly fee of between $2 and $8.

The project is being implemented in partnership with an accredited key certification centre of the Ministry of Justice, which is an authorised provider of the service. All points where Mobile ID SIM cards are issued have been certified, with the staff responsible for connecting the service to users having received formal certification as well. According to the Ministry of Justice, Mobile ID is more reliable than other authorisation and identification methods, and will provide a secure and trusted way to identify individuals.

News in Brief Korea Adopts New ePassport Design South Korea has adopted a new design for its next generation ePassports. The new ePassport design was revised after consulting experts based on the proposal of Prof Kim Soo-Jung of Seoul National University, who won the 2007 government contest.

The new design will utilise traditional Korean beauty, with the cover for ordinary passports now coming in navy blue, a change from green which has been used since 1988. The cover will feature the embossed works of the ‘taegeuk’ mark, a symbol that is most prominently displayed on the country's national flag.

The new travel document will also incorporate a polycarbonate datapage with laser engraved bio data to make it harder to forge, and images of Korean cultural properties on the background of the pages.

The government plans to start issuing the new passports in 2020. In the meantime, it will promote the new passport design through the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Manpower, and the social network service and will be asking the public to provide feedback through online surveys.

South Korea’s new ordinary, official and diplomatic passports.

Jordan Launches ePassport Jordan’s Civil Status and Passport Department (CSPD) has announced that the country is introducing ePassports as part of plans to provide a more secure travel document and facilitate passenger travel.

In cooperation with the Ministry of Information and Communications Technology (ICT), CSPD has also launched an online passport renewal service which was scheduled for 2020. Passports will be issued and delivered using fingerprint matching based on match-on-card technology through the CSPD’s offices or by the Jordan Post, depending on the applicant’s preference.

According to the government, such a step has an impact on citizens’ lives and is compliant with the government’s policy to alleviate the pressures on citizens by saving them time and money.

The ePassport scheme along with the new online renewal service is expected to save the State Treasury around $1.4 million.

CSPD currently issues around 500,000 passports per year.

Thailand Trials National Digital ID System Thailand is trialling a national digital ID system with a view to making the service available to the public in the next 3-5 months. The system has been launched in a limited pilot phase among bank staff and is expected to go live by the summer.

Thailand’s national digital ID programme employs blockchain and facial recognition technology and will enable users to have a new feature for mobile services, with banks used as identity platforms. Under current plans, users will be able to use the digital ID at multiple banks. Once the initial transaction is made no documents will be required to provide access to services.

According to the government, the initial phase will need monitoring to prevent fraud.

But with collaboration among government agencies, the Provincial Administration Department in particular, the system will be strengthened and create a space that has not been addressed by the department.

The digital ID effort is being implemented by the country’s Digital Government Development Agency in collaboration with the Bank of Thailand, the Thailand Securities and Exchange Commission and the Revenue Department.

Taiwan to Launch National eID Cards Taiwan's parliament has unveiled a plan to replace national ID cards with electronic ID cards to be issued nationwide in the second half of 2020.

According to the National Development Council (NDC), which oversees the Executive Yuan’s ‘smart government’ initiative, popularising eID cards is a critical step toward becoming a ‘smart government’.

NDC said the eID would serve as a key rather than a data storage device, as it would not be able to store personal data. A person’s information will be encrypted before it is uploaded to a cloud via a backbone network shared by government agencies, which would only be allowed to access the data when necessary.

The eID is to combine the functionality of the national ID card and the Citizen Digital Certificate, which is used to file taxes online. The Ministry of the Interior will be responsible for designing the card.

The initiative is expected to improve decision-making and will create a nextgeneration governance model by initiating collaboration between the public and private sectors, providing people with more convenient services. The initiative is also seen as an important policy to help the country become synchronised with digital governments around the world.

AU to Adopt Guidelines for the Design and Production of AU Passport The African Union (AU) has announced plans to adopt guidelines for the design, production and issuance of the AU passport, in a bid to further facilitate free movement across the continent.

The AU passport project was formally launched in July 2016 but to date has remained the privilege of heads of governments and diplomats.

The introduction of the passport is expected to bring about increased migration of Africans within Africa, and pave the way for the AU’s 2063 Agenda for ‘a continent with seamless borders’ to help facilitate the free movement of African nationals.

The project also aims to improve intraAfrican trade and to ease the movement of domestic goods between member states.

The passport will also allow the countries to profit from intra-Africa tourism; tourism is one of the most promising economic sectors in Africa, and the industry has the potential to boost economic growth on the continent.

Israel Issues RFI for Biometric Testing and Analysis System Israel’s Biometric Database Management Authority (BDMA) has requested that companies answer a Request for Information (RFI) for a Biometric Testing and Analysis System (BTAS) it is developing.

The BDMA says the RFI is open to organisations that are legally registered and have engaged in the provision of integrative project management for the establishment of a BTAS – and/or provision of technical assistance and support for a BTAS system to at least one customer. Organisations should also have performed at least one technology project that includes a BTAS. Respondent are asked to send details to magentest@moin.gov.il before 14 February at 17:00 (Israel time).

NEWS IN BRIEF | VOLUME 7 – NO 1 | JANUARY 2019

3

Travel and ID Documents: Security Features Revisited

By Martin Fürbach, Forensic Document Expert, University of Lausanne, Switzerland Criminal activities related to travel and identity (ID) documents affect virtually all countries, although not to the same extent nor via the same modus operandi.

Contrary to other security documents such as banknotes or tax stamps, fraudulent activities related to travel and ID documents are more complex; major activities related to banknotes or tax stamps focus on production of imitations – counterfeits using commercial materials with the aim to replicate visually the original as close as possible.

In contrast, fraudulent activities related to travel or ID documents involve not only counterfeiting, but also modification to different extents (photo, personal data, removing data entries from pages, or removing and replacing pages) of lost or stolen documents.

Furthermore, lost or stolen documents can be misused without any alteration, for example in the case of similarity of photograph with the person using this document. While security features are not a universal solution against all activities, well designed and printed documents bearing a good combination of security features have been shown as solid prevention against counterfeiting or modifications.

Revisited?

The aim of this series is to discuss individual security features from various aspects that are related but not limited to their counterfeit resistance, design-related issues, ease of integration with the document, ease of verification both by laypersons, inspectors or forensic laboratories, etc.

Why should features, including those used for dozens of years (OVDs, threads) or even more than hundreds (watermarks, letterpress) be revisited? Isn't the fact that they are still used sufficient proof of their counterfeit resistance? This article will concentrate on points that justify revisiting security features owing to the fact that they become much less confidential than in recent history and have become easier to imitate because of similar features used in commercial market (for example, decorative packaging).

Counterfeiting

While security features preventing modifications (for example, presence of chemicals that can modify the paper of the document where there is intention by criminals to wash out the original text) will also be the object of this series of articles, the main focus in this on will be individual features that have high resistance against counterfeiting.

Counterfeiting is as old as genuine documents themselves. However, it has never been easier to produce counterfeits than it is now. Amateurs profit from all-inone devices, allowing anybody to produce good quality copies (colour, resolution) that, in the case of lack of time (accompanied by non-ideal conditions of verification – low light, stress etc.) might be sufficient for the purpose. High-quality scanners and professional graphics software that were in the past available only to photographers, illustrators, or the DTP community now have a much wider audience and are available for free or at a relatively low cost compared to the past. Furthermore, inkjet printers produce a larger gamut of colours and higher resolution. This is also accelerated by communication on the internet, both ‘visible’ (accessible via Google) and ‘latent’ (dark web).

4 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | VIEWPOINT

The watermark has been a strong security feature for hundreds of years; can it keep its value and what are the most advanced ones currently out there?

There is a need to integrate more and more security features, but in the worst case this leads to the fact that one feature starts to reduce value of others because of limited space. Contrary to history, the current commercial market offers different security features. Also, some design-based features start to lose value because of easier imitation in commercial software or production, even by different printing techniques.

The need for other forms of identification than conventional comparison of photography in documents with the person bearing the document, as in the case of identification of persons on the internet, might call for the need for completely different security features than are currently employed.

Security features

Security features can be viewed from many different perspectives. The common classification (used in the literature, by the industry or issuing authorities) is based on the level of skills needed to perform verification of the features and how confidential they may be, if the features are substrate-based (watermark), design or print-based (secure background printing) or rather applied (as is the case, for example, with foil-based optically variable features – OVDs), and if they are detected by human senses or by machines. Further practical aspects of security features are their readability (in various lighting conditions), counterfeit resistance and mechanical resistance.

Level of examination

Based on the degree of skills necessary to perform verification, features can be classified according to three or four categories – public, inspection and forensic levels (and manufacturer in the event of four levels).

The first level is generally defined as the ability to be detected without tools utilising visual or tactile features for rapid inspection in the field. The second level is performed by trained inspectors with simple tools (for example, magnifying glass or UV light).

The third level is conducted by forensic specialists performing detailed examinations under laboratory conditions, including sophisticated techniques (for example, measurement of infrared properties).

The fourth level can be carried out in collaboration with the manufacturer or by the manufacturer itself as a definitive proof of authenticity (based on fine details, for example, details of the origination technique of a hologram).

Level of knowledge

The level of knowledge for detecting security features is related to the level of examination; features at higher levels require greater knowledge. This was completely true in the past but nowadays is changing – dedicated detectors for specific taggants can be used by persons with minimal knowledge and can provide binary responses either in the form of visual or acoustic signals based on the presence or absence of taggants. On the contrary, complexity of certain OVD features might require more in-depth knowledge to evaluate whether the feature is genuine or not and requires more than a simple analysis as opposed to ‘present or absent’.

Cost

The general understanding of the level of security has also been historically related to the increasing cost of the features (as well as the cost of detecting such features because of the cost of devices, training of personnel, etc.). While first-level features were considered inexpensive to detect and produce, fourth level was considered to require expensive materials that were detected by very expensive machines.

This is changing in two ways. Firstly, the sophistication and size of certain first-level features means that their cost of production has become more relevant. Secondly, the decreasing prices of portable detectors for taggants permits detection to be performed using devices that cost a fraction of the large laboratory devices employed in the past. Furthermore, the cost of training and the time spent on their detection have become rather negligible.

Communication

In the past, issuing authorities’ communication regarding security documents and specifically security features present in travel and ID documents as well as banknotes was very limited, if any communication was provided at all. This was based on the fears that this communication would educate counterfeiters and, as a consequence, the general public were left without information.

This has changed from the 1980s in the case of banknotes and began to change over last two decades in the case of ID and travel documents. More and more countries publish more and more detailed information about the presence of security features in ID and travel documents. Even when countries do not publish any information (or provide information only in local languages), information is diffused by other countries (for instance, the PRADO public online database containing currently all EU member countries’ information and more – a total of over 150 countries, including international documents of Interpol or the United Nations).

only painstaking work of the counterfeiter using a magnifying glass can be sufficient to discover concrete errors in the microtext of other documents.

The internet contains everything

Sharing information on the Internet (for example in the form of discussion forums and tutorials) allows current counterfeiters to improve faster than before when they kept their know-how secret. Also, if counterfeiters follow manuals and use recommended devices and shared master files, followed by the same materials simulating security features, different counterfeiters can produce much more similar counterfeits that might be difficult or even impossible to distinguish between the counterfeiters who produced them, which makes investigations longer, more costly and more difficult.

Time to leave some security features, and introduce new ones?

Digital printing is creating a revolution in security printing globally – it decreases the value of ‘old’ security features, like the letterpress, that were the only means of printing variable numbers in the past. Digital printing is by quality close to becoming competitive to offset and while printed in lines (not fragmented to dots as is the case in commercial printing) by using unique inks, it can provide not only a means of personalisation (as it is used currently) but printing of the whole documents, including background printing in a single step.

This is the reality with fully digitally printed paper-based tax stamps now and it will be very interesting to see if this will revolutionise in a few years genuine ID and travel document production as well.

Gap between security and commercial printing

Historically, the introduction of OVDs to protect identity documents and banknotes was a breakthrough that was very difficult to imitate for a certain period owing to the absence or extremely high cost (and very limited use in commercial or decorative industry) of commercial holography on the market, the small number of companies producing commercial holograms that could be misused, the high cost of production etc.

Nowadays, this is changing and many security features have become easier to imitate (or it is easier to order custommade counterfeited features) as a result of advances in the commercial market.

Further examples vary from devices that can be used for production embossing template (counterfeiter can produce embossing template using 3D printer), laser or mechanical-engraving machines or standard inkjet printers using non-standard inks (for example, UV inkjet cartridges) – all available in costs of hundreds of dollars contrary to thousands in the recent past.

Is letterpress becoming an obsolete means of personalisation?

Conclusion

Security features (classified for ages in certain categories) might lose their value because of the fact that they are communicated, produced or examined differently than when they were invented.

In addition, they might become less challenging for counterfeiters because of the fact that commercial markets offer them both from the point of ‘prepress’ (design and origination) and press (including application of further features) much more and for significantly lower costs than was the case for counterfeiter of the 1980s or 1990s. Individual security features are going to be discussed in upcoming issues.

Too much communication?

At present, even features that are considered to be confidential (for example, magnetic or infrared inks) are communicated publically by some central banks and commercial databases (both in the case of ID documents and banknotes). This has had a global impact as counterfeiters can expect similar features in other documents that are not communicated, and the features are no longer confidential at all.

Furthermore, if principles are conveyed publically (for example, in the case of deliberate errors in microtext, which frequently has some variation, for example incorrect diacritics or ‘typographic errors’), Guilloches (genuine left) have been in use for dozens of years, has their value as a security feature changed in recent years due to progress in laser and inkjet devices used for counterfeiting (centre and right image)?

VIEWPOINT | VOLUME 7 – NO 1 | JANUARY 2019

5

Gradiant Launches Valida

Veridos Presents New Colour Personalisation Technology

Spanish biometric firm Gradiant has launched Valida, a fully automatic forensic analysis tool designed to detect manipulations in multimedia documents (jpeg or pdf files). The solution is based on AI-based forensic techniques that detect any modification made to identity documents, photographs or other files.

Veridos has announced the release of a new security feature that will allow governments to apply secure, durable and vibrant colour ID photos with high process flexibility for polycarbonate (PC) identity documents.

According to the company, the technology will allow companies to offer an extra level of security in a document-not-present environment, as it automatically analyses any type of identity document and other digital files such as payroll, invoices, and receipts, and detects possible attacks of impersonation and forgeries in the data present in these files.

With forensic techniques based on artificial intelligence, Valida analyses the document and shows the manipulated areas, through a heat map that clearly indicates where the forgery has taken place.

Valida supports all types of identity documents including passports, identity cards and driving licences without specific adaptations. In addition, it does not require connection to external databases such as identity document databases to detect modifications, and also warns if a document has been captured from a screen and is therefore not a photograph taken of the original document.

Commenting on the development, Gradient’s Director of the Multimodal Information Department, Daniel González, said: ‘this is an important innovation in the current digital world, where companies carry out thousands of user and file verifications each day. Besides, it is not necessary to have the original document to detect the modifications with Valida.

At Gradiant, we believe that the key to success in development based on forensic technology is linked to three major concepts: security, convenience and availability, so we integrate these principles in all our developments.’

The new product is called CLIP ID – short for Colour Laser Image Protected ID – and now means Veridos offers two colour image solutions for polycarbonate identity documents, the other being its POLYCORE® technology.

POLYCORE technology, is an all-in-one inkjet printing solution for centralised production and personalisation processes where blank documents are not preproduced, but rather the entire document is prepared in one process. CLIP ID, by contrast, combines secure laser engraving with durable image inkjet printing, whilst allowing maximum flexibility in the production and personalisation processes. This results in a lifelike colour image of the holder of the ID, in true vivid colours.

Manipulated IDs are easy to detect by either touching the image with a finger or viewing it under an infrared light.

The technology is compatible with all commonly used ID formats including new ePassports.

CLIP ID begins at the manufacturing stage of the ID document, where all the different layers are compiled and collated ready for lamination. During the lamination process, a lenticular structure in the photo area of the bearer is added.

Using a proprietary new method developed by the company, the digital photo of the ID holder is then separated into a black and white picture and a colour version. A black and white image of the bearer is laser engraved into the layers of the document. This is followed by colour printing by inkjet of the photo of the bearer into the lenticular structure on the photo area of the document to produce a vibrant photo that is inseparably bonded with the PC substrate.

According to Veridos, the benefits of the technology are as follows: Vibrant colour photos on any polycarbonate ID, including datapages for passports and any type of ID card;

A document analysed by Valida showing manipulated areas.

6 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | TECHNOLOGY NEWS

The technology utilises a unique combination of secure laser engraving and photo printing on a specially structured photo area;

The technology can be incorporated into both centralised and decentralised personalisation workflows, separate from document production; The technology offers a secure and cost-effective solution for the personalisation of next-generation identity documents; High durability and with no need for an additional protective layer(s).

Sample ID card integrating CLIP ID.

The company says today all polycarbonate identity documents are expected to include reliable forgeryprevention features and to be easy to integrate into a variety of production workflows. Forgery-proof photos are a key component of this. Laser-engraved black-and-white images were once the standard for polycarbonate documents, but today’s governments and other state authorities and their citizens expect more: high-quality vivid colour photos and the latest security features, and CLIP ID has been developed to meet these expectations.

CLIP ID is being implemented in Bangladesh’s new ePassport. Major General Md Masud Rezwan, Director General of the Bangladesh Department of Immigration and Passport, said: ‘we are proud to offer our citizens ePassports with high-quality colour images. With more than 160 million inhabitants, Bangladesh is the world’s eighth most populous country and will provide the highest output of passports with colour photos worldwide.’

Fabiola Bellersheim, Head of Sales, Asia at Veridos added: ‘CLIP ID combines laser engraving and colour printing within a customised lenticular structure.

This guarantees utmost security and long-lasting product lifetime without the need for additional protection layers. It can be applied by any laser engraving and inkjet printing, making it a very cost-effective technology.’

Company News NPA Celebrates 25 Million ePassports Note Printing Australia (NPA) has staged a celebration event to mark the production of 25 million ePassport books.

The start of NPA’s passport production journey began in 2003 when the organisation moved from the security printing of passport pages to securing the job of assembling the whole book.

Within a short period of time, it was also learned that Australia had to deliver a biometrically-enabled passport within two years in order to maintain its US visa waiver status. Furthermore, with inventory of the previous passport series running low, there was no fall back to anything other than the successful delivery of the project.

NPA and its passport team were successful in delivering the world’s first ICAO-compliant passport book, making Australia one of only a handful of countries to meet the tight US deadline. A range of innovative improvements were made over the years, including the introduction of inline electronic chip readers and changes in adhesives and other security upgrades, that have led to the book being considered one of the best in its class.

In congratulating Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) on their success with the ePassport program, NPA’s CEO Malcolm McDowell said: ‘millions of Australians have relied on this book for safe and unhindered travel, and as a symbol of the nation the integrity and security of this book speaks for itself.’

NPA’s former Head of Passports, Ashley Hannon, summed up the experience by saying: ‘to successfully produce 25 million ePassports has not only been the result of continual process improvement and innovation, but also the dedication of the passport staff who own the process and are accountable for quality. They have shown over the years that they are eager to adopt new processes and to succeed. The production of the 25 million books has been a true team effort.’

Australian Passport Office’s Executive Director Ross Tysoe receiving an engraved intaglio plate commemorating the production of 25 million ePassports from (L-R) NPA Chair Chris Aylmer and CEO Malcolm McDowell.

Delta Capital and Ciotola SRL Announce Joint Venture Prague-based Delta Capital Stock Company has announced that SPM Security Paper Mill, part of Delta Capital as an investment group, has entered into an agreement with Italy's Ciotola srl, establishing a joint venture, operating the Security Paper Mill in Steti, the Czech Republic.

The company will be managed by CEO Dr Alfonso Ciotola, a paper industry professional who has held top management positions in the international speciality and security paper Industry over the past 40 years.

SPM Speciality Paper Mill is a leading European manufacturer of medium and high-level security papers with 50 years' experience in the Security Industry.

Ciotola is an international sales & marketing organisation and a key player in the international security paper market for the past 18 years.

Michael Broda, Chairman of Delta said: ‘this is important growth deal with our long-term partner in the paper business. Ciotola is the perfect fit for us, offering consummate paper professionalism and has the global sales network to fulfil our expanding ambitions in the coming years’.

Alfonso Ciotola added: ‘The global security printing industry has grown at a CAGR of 6 % in the last few years and will continue to grow in the future. We see our mission as providing the security industry with innovative substrates to prevent and detect tampering, counterfeiting, copying, all supporting product authenticity.’

NEXT Biometrics and IOTA Announce Collaboration NEXT Biometrics has announced a collaboration effort with IOTA Foundation to develop IoT solutions integrating NEXT’s fingerprint sensor technology and IOTA’s open-source protocol.

IOTA Foundation is a non-profit focused on distributed ledger technology (DLT) and permission-less ecosystem development.

The foundation’s mission is to support the development and standardisation of new DLTs, including the IOTA Tangle. This is a type of DLT specifically designed for the IoT environment. It is an open-source protocol facilitating machine-to-machine interactions, including secure data transfer, fee-less realtime micropayments, and the collection and dissemination of sensor-based and other types of ‘oracle’ and other data.

According to the announcement, NEXT will integrate IOTA technology into a selection of its sensor products, leveraging IOTA’s technical expertise to ensure development of seamless solutions. Both parties said they will utilise their networks to promote and showcase NEXT and IOTA technology.

‘The integration of IOTA into NEXT Biometrics sensors is a key step to build solutions that enable safe, effective user identification at the device level,’ said Holger Köther, director of partnerships at the IOTA Foundation. ‘Together these solutions will provide digital trust as we move towards the Internet of Everything.’

Covestro Builds New Polycarbonate Production Line in Thailand Covestro has started to build up a new manufacturing line for polycarbonate films in Thailand to serve the fast-growing demand in Asia Pacific and strengthen its position as a market leader.

The project is the first step of a global capacity increase for Covestro´s film production. The total investment of more than €100 million also includes an expansion of the associated infrastructure and logistics.

‘Our existing films plant in Map Ta Phut has been a high-performing and valued facility,’ said Dr Thorsten Dreier, Global Head of Covestro´s Specialty Films Business. ‘Our main objective with this expansion is to intensify our collaboration with customers in Asia Pacific, in particular, to improve efficiency and punctual delivery.

With market-focused innovations and a stronger customer orientation we want to drive growth for Covestro. This is an excellent strategic fit, enabling fastest timeto-market, but also broadening our market access in Asia.’

The existing films facility started operations in January 2007 and produces Makrofol® polycarbonate and Bayfol polycarbonate blend films, which are used in industry sectors such as security and ID cards, automotive, medical, as well as electrical and electronics. It produces a selection of grades, including new optical grades, and the new facility is designed to extend the range of products in response to market demand.

COMPANY NEWS | VOLUME 7 – NO 1 | JANUARY 2019

7

HSP EMEA Programme Announced Organisers of the High Security Printing™ Conferences (HSP), Reconnaissance International, have announced the programme for the upcoming HSP EMEA event taking place in Malta on 25-27 March.

A total of 45 presentations will be delivered over the two days with seven dedicated sessions covering travel and identity documents in the region, recent developments, document design, security and personalisation, identity management and verification, eDriving licences (eDLs) and government services, as well as document fraud and authentication and technology and innovation.

The event will open with pre-conference seminars on 25 March, one of which will be dedicated to identity documents. ‘The Digital Revolution in Fraud’ presented

by Michael van Gestel and Dimi Radu of

Onfido will focus on the challenges global organisations deal with when trying to stop targeted attacks in a document-not-present environment. During this interactive seminar the presenters will share some of casestudies in digital fraud and the results of Onfido’s research that can help participants make better informed decisions regarding document authenticity in scans and copies.

The opening session of the conference on the following day will include presentations from Identity Malta on the new Maltese ePassport and eID card and Estonia’s Police and Border Guard Board on the new eID card launched last month.

The following session will present latest trends in ePassports and travel visas, the new Polish ePassport and the new EU visa project.Five papers will then explore developments in security features including advances in optical and foil-based features,

colour personalisation technology for polycarbonate and laser engraving. The next session will explore topics relating to identity management and refinancing eID projects.

The final day will see presentations on the new Kuwait eDL, the Dutch eDL and eServices as well as document fraud and counterfeiting. A dedicated session focusing on innovation and technology will formally close the event.

A specialised exhibition of some 35 companies will be held as part of the event, providing delegates with an opportunity to see the latest industry products and solutions. As usual, the event will play host to the prestigious Regional Banknote and Regional ID Document of the Year awards. www.hsp-emea.com

Events

12–13 FEBRUARY 2019 Publisher: Reconnaissance International Ltd. Editor: Micaal Sidorov (right).

Contributors: Martin Fürbach.

Advisors: Alex van Duuren, Alan Hodgson, John Mercer Monica Peralta, Tony Poole.

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25–27 MARCH 2019

HIGH SECURITY PRINTING EMEA St Julian's, Malta www.hsp-europe.com

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While every effort has been made to check the information given in this publication, the publishers cannot accept any responsibility for any loss or damage arising out of, or caused by the use of, such information. Opinions expressed in ID & Secure Document News are those of the individual authors and not necessarily those of the publisher.

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Experienced, discreet and reliable. Contact us to find the best available talent. www.axesspageoverton.com

8 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | CONFERENCES

SECURE IDENTIFICATION Riga, Latvia www.secureidentification.lv Our printer Colyer Group is ISO:14001 certified for environmental standards, and also FSC Forestry certified – ensuring all our media comes from sustainable sources.

VOLUME 7 – NO 2 / FEBRUARY 2019

Hong Kong Unveils New ePassport

ISO to Adopt New Biometric Standards for Passports The 17th plenary meeting of the ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 37, a technical programme on standards for biometric data interchange formats for passports, has approved Working Group 3’s (WG3) suggestion to run a ballot on the second Draft International Standards (DIS) of the new passport standard ISO/ IEC 39794-1, Extensible biometric data interchange formats – Part1: Framework.

Hong Kong’s new ePassport pages under UV light.

Hong Kong’s Immigration Department has unveiled a new ePassport boasting state-of-the-art security upgrades, creative ultraviolet designs and a biodata page sporting the national flag above the city’s Bauhinia emblem.

According to Hong Kong Immigration Department, the existing passport first launched in 2007 already incorporated advanced security features, but the new one will make counterfeiting of the travel document more difficult.

The biodata page contains a laserengraved portrait photo of the holder under a transparent layer – a technology also adopted for the new Hong Kong eID cards that rolled out in December. The page will be made of polycarbonate and will carry micro-printing.

The booklet incorporates new-generation tactile relief features, including new full-colour UV printing. Visa pages are in various flower prints, and a special feature brings out the city’s skyline on each page – in a different colour theme – when placed under UV light.

The new ePassports have the Tsing Ma Bridge – the world’s 11th longest span suspension bridge – connecting the islands of Tsing Yi and Ma Wan, and the regional flag as background print. The datapage features the national, Chinese flag above the regional flag, next to the Golden Bauhinia Square (the bauhinia flower is the national emblem of Hong Kong).

A so-called ‘fanning’ effect on the passport’s open side will display the word ‘Hong Kong’ in Chinese characters and the letters ‘HK’ when the page edges are viewed at an angle. When the edges are seen from the opposite direction, a picture of the Tsing Ma Bridge will appear.

To streamline procedures, self-service kiosks will be introduced to allow people to take photos and collect the passports later.

Applications are expected to open in the second quarter.

www.securedocumentnews.com

Last year the department issued over 700,000 passports, and 11.5 million since 1997.

In 2018, authorities found a total of 449 forged travel documents, whilst in 2017 the number reached 515.

The decision will allow the framework standard to be reviewed once more so it can be synchronised with the ISO/IEC 39794-4 standard on finger image data and the ISO/IEC 39794-5 standard on face image data.

Following the last commenting round, the set of these three standards will then be promoted to Final Draft International Standard (FDIS) so that a decision can be made at the next WG3 meeting, which takes place 8-12 July.

A core concept followed by this new standards series is that encoding of biometric data will be done in an extensible data structure, as is needed for future ePassports.

The current timeline agreed with ICAO is that the new standard series is to be finalised in December 2019, so that ICAO can adopt its 9303 specification

by April 2020 and then refer to ISO/IEC 39794-1, -4 and -5.

ePassport Market to Witness Substantial Growth in Coming Years According to a recent study on the ePassport market published by UKbased independent market intelligence consultancy Future Market Insights (FMI), 2019 will see 19% Year-Over-Year (YOY) growth in ePassports. The report offers a detailed analysis of the market volume, market drivers, challenges, opportunities and trends, and industry growth factors, along with the collective opinion and perspectives of ePassport market participants.

FMI projects the global ePassport market to witness 7.4x expansion at an estimated Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 22.1% during the next decade. Several major elements will drive this growth, including protocols implemented by regulatory bodies such as International Civil Aviation Association (ICAO) and International Air Transport Association (IATA) to improve border security and smart airport initiatives.

Inside this Issue 1 Hong Kong Unveils New ePassport

1 ISO to Adopt New

Biometric Standards for Passports

2 ePassport Market

to Witness Substantial Growth in Coming Years

Additionally, with the growing number of passengers, there has been an increase in the demand for advanced digital security and data encryption solutions to ensure reliability and fast processing at airports, which in turn has been generating high demand for ePassports.

According to the report, the local data structure (LDS) format, employed traditionally in ePassports, has been witnessing significant changes in the recent past, with ICAO working on a new version of LDS, called LDS2, which will retain backward compatibility while incorporating read-write function. This will further extend the functionality of ePassports with applications that enable the storage of travel data, including travel stamps and visas, coupled with other information that includes special programmes or advanced biometrics for special passengers.

The roadmap for LDS2 has given rise to new concepts for the use and collection of passenger information, which in turn is expected to have far-reaching implications for airports. With refugee crises and a rise in international terrorism, demand for counterfeit and stolen passports has been on the increase, which has led governments and airlines to improve their security systems.

The study states that the ubiquity of biometric technology continues to enable thorough, yet time-effective, screenings with the aid of chip readers, which are particularly pervasive in commercialised settings such as the hospitality industry.

As biometric technology becomes vital for

national security, converging digital and physical identities via ePassports is viewed as a commendable solution for improved efficacy and accuracy of border security.

In terms of security or from a technological point of view, conventionally-used ePassports were based on BAC (Basic Access Control) and were chip based, with basic information; however, with technological advancements, ePassports are being deployed with biometric information and advanced SAC (Supplemented Access Control) and PACE (Password Authenticated Connection Establishment) technologies.

The global ePassport market has also witnessed an increase in the number of mergers and acquisitions to expand suppliers’ global reach and product offerings based on the latest technologies for the development of advanced digital security solutions.

There has been a particularly rapid rise in the demand for ePassport solutions across the developing countries of Asia Pacific.

The governments in countries such as India have made noteworthy investments in the development of airport infrastructure and the adoption of more secure digital solutions.

The global ePassport market report highlights various supply and demand side trends, along with strategic recommendations and a detailed analysis of the ePassport market on the basis of various segments. The report also offers forecasts for the ePassport market for the period up to 2028.

3 News in Brief 4 GET Selected

to Provide Personalisation Systems for Next Generation US Passport

5 Travel and

Identity Documents: Classification of Security Features

6 The Nature of ID in the Digital Age

7 Company News 8 Distilled Identity

and Emerge Develop ID Platform for Regugees Global ePassport market analysis 2018-2028 by region, technology and application.

2 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | MARKET NEWS

News in Brief Iceland Launches New ePassport Iceland has unveiled a new version of the Icelandic ePassport. Registers Iceland, an office under the Ministry of the Interior which maintains the national register and is responsible for issuance of travel and identity documents, has been working on the new ePassport for two years.

The new travel document includes added security features as well as new illustrations of landscapes around Iceland, and the golden plover (which flies north each year to spend the summer in Iceland). According to Registers Iceland, the new changes will cost the government around ISK 200 million to implement (€1.45 million).

Registers Iceland has also significantly cut down on the waiting time for a new passport from two weeks to two days.

The traditional blue colour of the passport cover will stay the same.

Iceland’s new ePassport.

Alabama Deploys eID App Following a successful 2017 pilot programme, the Alabama Department of Revenue has deployed the Alabama eID app as part of an identity protection programme to fight state income tax refund theft.

Developed by IDEMIA, the app is available for download in Apple’s App Store and in the Google Play Store. Users complete a short registration process in which their identities are verified by scanning their physical driver’s licence or state-issued ID and taking a selfie with their smartphone. The information is then compared against the data and photo on record in the driver’s licence database to verify that the person registering for the app is who they claim to be. The app will allow taxpayers to securely verify if they filed the return or decline the transaction because it is fraudulent.

Commenting on the deployment IDEMIA’s Senior Vice President, Civil Identity for North America, Matt Thompson said: ‘our highly secure IDEMIA eID app empowers Alabama taxpayers to take control of their identity to protect themselves and their state tax refund. The latest update enhances the security while making it easier to use, which will delight everyone who uses the app.’

Vernon Barnett, Commissioner of the Alabama Department of Revenue added: ‘we’re proud Alabama is leading the nation in securing taxpayer identities against state income tax fraud. Not only will we protect taxpayers against criminals, taxpayers who use the Alabama eID app will also receive priority processing of their refund.’

Nigeria Upgrades ePassport Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari has launched the new enhanced Nigerian ePassport with a 10-year validity period.

The ePassport is claimed to be a visual and tactile symbol of Nigeria’s progress in reforming institutions, building skills and expanding infrastructure. The design of the document features a combination of patterns and images that reflect Nigeria’s diversity.

The enhanced ePassport addresses the problem of identity theft by incorporating 25 additional security features compared to the previous version, including a twocolour guilloche security background design pattern, rainbow print and microtext, multi-colour intaglio print, latent images, UV fluorescent inks and a polycarbonate datapage.

As part of plans to commence the production of passports in the country through the Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company, the federal government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Kuala Lumpurbased IRIS Corporation who are currently supplying the new document.

The indigenisation means that, going forward, the production of ePassport will be done in Nigeria alone. According to the government, producing the document locally will provide employment for Nigerians and reduce the demand for foreign exchange.

The new cards were first issued to those living in Pyongyang at the beginning of last year. Only those living in areas that are hard to reach or very small counties are still waiting for their new document.

The authorities are not charging any fees for the new cards, but all citizens are required to take blood tests, have new ID photos taken, and provide fingerprint data. The new card is 8cm long and 5.5cm wide, a slight reduction in size compared to previous cards. The colour scheme has also been modified.

According to the Citizen Registration Department, the eID card will provide a way to confirm the holder’s identity as it cannot be illegally used by others or counterfeited.

As part of the initiative, the North Korean authorities will be maintaining an electronic citizen registration database.

According to some reports, the issuing of the new cards is related to the Supreme People’s Assembly (SPA) elections to be held in March.

Sri Lanka to launch eIDs and ePassports Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Home Affairs has announced plans to introduce a national eID card and ePassport later this year as part of its universal identity card scheme. The new eID card is already being issued at Divisional Secretariats countrywide and is expected to be combined with the driving licence.

Chips on the eID card will contain an individual's core information, including biometric details such as fingerprints.

Meanwhile, according to the government, the ePassport system will enable arrivals and departures into and out of the country to be tracked.

Poland Introduces eID Cards Poland is introducing national eID cards from next month, with the Ministry of Digitalisation estimating that up to 1.5 million Poles will receive the new document by the end of the year.

Nigeria’s new ePassport design.

North Korea Completes Roll-Out of New eID Cards

The data recorded on the eID card will be the same as in the current non-chip cards, including personal and biographic details.

The new document will retain the current design and will not store any medical or financial data. According to plans, the card will be introduced gradually, with the current version expected to be phased out by 2029.

The North Korean government has announced that it has almost completed the rollout of its new chip-based national ID cards to its citizens, with the exception of some residents living in mountainous areas.

NEWS IN BRIEF | VOLUME 7 – NO 2 | FEBRUARY 2019

3

GET Selected to Provide Personalisation Systems for Next Generation US Passport This technology will significantly upgrade the security of the passport, provide a long, productive and useful life, while minimising the cost of ownership.

A leading provider of end-to-end solutions for secure credentials, GET Group North America (GET), has announced that the company has been selected to provide state-of-the-art laser engraving personalisation systems for the Next Generation US passport under the US Department of State’s contract with Integral Consulting Services, Inc of Rockville, Maryland.

GET and IAI Industrial Systems (IAI), a Dutch company and a division of Austin, Texas-based HID Global, are part of Integral’s team. GET will be responsible for delivering, deploying and maintaining personalisation systems manufactured by IAI.

Q: Why IAI?

A: GET closely evaluated all the industry manufacturers of laser passport personalisation equipment and identified IAI Industrial Systems as having one of the best technologies for personalisation of polycarbonate data pages and ideal for the US production environment of central and regional/local issuance.

Alex Kambanis, President & Managing Director, GET Group North America.

Q: Can you provide some background on GET Group’s involvement with the Department of State?

Under the Next Generation Passport Personalisation System contract, Integral – with support from GET and IAI – are implementing state-of-the-art Passport Personalisation technology comprising enhanced security features, automated quality checks, and laser and inkjet printing.

The single-award contract for a base period of one year and four one-year option periods, requires installation and maintenance of NextGen Passport Personalisation systems at two passport production centres and 27 passport agencies around the United States.

The state-of-the-art solution will be used to personalise about 22 million passports annually while providing significant security improvements over the existing US passport book.

In an exclusive, ID & Secure Document News™ briefly spoke to Alex Kambanis, Managing Director of GET Group North America to find out more about the project and what it represents for the company.

4 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | ON RECORD

A: The founder of GET established a concept of reverse transfer application of digital colour photos and text on a paper substrate – specifically for passport personalisation. This concept was jointly developed by GET and Toppan Printing of Japan. Under this arrangement, GET maintained exclusive global rights to commercialise the technology.

In 1998, this technology was adopted by the Department of State, thus transitioning from a manual photo insertion/lamination process to an automated re-transfer printing of high-quality colour images and personalised text directly onto the paper data pages of the US passport. Once issued in 1998, this passport became one of the most secure travel documents in the world.

Q: Please provide some background on winning the contract for the Next-Gen Passport Personalisation system.

A: GET is an active participant in ICAO, ISO, DSA and other thought-leading organisations. Through these organisations, GET has closely monitored trends in travel documents and their evolution to include polycarbonate data pages. This enabled GET to get ahead of the trend and offer the Department of State the most advanced laser engraving personalisation technology for the US next generation passport.

We established a partnership nearly six years ago – well before the procurement process for the Next Generation passport programme began – and worked closely together to develop a solution that would be the most responsive to the complex challenge of implementing a nationwide system of personalisation printers. An intangible that exists between GET and IAI is the cultural fit between our organisations and our personnel. The consistency of goals and work styles are very complimentary and enable us to deliver a unified and completely coordinated team.

Q: Which machines will be deployed?

A: GET is providing High Volume BookMaster One systems at the print centres in Tucson, Arizona and Hot Springs, Arkansas. For the regional offices, GET is providing the IAI BookMaster Pro systems, which are designed for a lower volume production environment. The personalisation technology is consistent between the high volume and the low volume printers, so the passports issued on any of the systems are forensically identical.

Q: This will be GET’s largest project, what does it represent for the company?

A: We have implemented several large and important projects globally. However, the opportunity to support the Next Generation US passport progamme is a great privilege for GET. These are exciting times for us. We have established an office in the Washington area to support this initiative and are delighted to be working with the excellent team at the Department of State on this most important programme. With 20 years supporting the legacy passport coming to a close, the Next Generation passport provides us with an opportunity to once again support the Department of State’s issuance of one of the world’s most secure passports. We are honoured to have been selected to support this project aimed at making US passports more advanced, and highly secure.

Travel and Identity Documents: Classification of Security Features

By Martin Fürbach, Forensic Document Expert, ESC/University of Lausanne, Switzerland The criteria for classifying security features that is most often mentioned in the context of travel and identity documents or, more generally, highsecurity printing (including banknotes, certificates, tax stamps etc.) are usually defined by level of examination (public, inspection, forensic), visibility (overt or covert), confidentiality (features that are communicated contrary to those that are kept confidential), and detection method (by humans or devices).

Various other criteria allow the classification of features based on their principle of detection (optical, chemical, instrumental analysis), and the method of incorporating them into a document (printed or applied). Printed features are further classified according to the type of printing technique used (intaglio, offset, silkscreen, letterpress and ‘digital printing’ – mainly inkjet and toner).

Various features can also be classified based on their origination technique, as is the case with optically variable devices (OVDs).

Compared to banknotes and tax stamps, in travel and identity documents the problems become even more complex as the main function is to protect against certain methods of carrying out fraudulent activities, such as preventing the copying of documents or their modification, or the alteration of certain information.

With travel documents, features are also classified by ICAO standards into further categories based on whether they are related to substrate materials, security design and printing, protection against copying, counterfeiting or fraudulent alteration and personalisation techniques.

Level of examination

In most cases, the literature mentions three different categories that are based on level of examination. This is also the case with ICAO standards, where features are classified as: level 1 – cursory examination for rapid inspection at the point of usage (easily identifiable visual or tactile features); level 2 – examination by trained inspectors with simple equipment; and level 3 – inspection by forensic specialists.

In some cases, features are classified into four categories: the three categories mentioned above plus a fourth category: ‘level 4 – manufacturer’, which refers to detailed properties of manufacture or origination of the features that can serve as the ‘final confirmation’ of authenticity and is based on highly specialised and confidential information.

An example of such characteristics can be the exact chemical composition of a complex taggant or intentional errors found in the origination of an OVD feature.

Visibility

At first glance, a simple criterion that allows classifying features into two categories can be based on whether certain features are visible to the naked eye (overt) or not (covert). However, with certain features, it is not as clear as it might seem.

With large applied security features (for example, holographic patches), visibility is quite obvious, and such features can be identified even if they are not communicated beforehand to a layperson. On the other hand, a chemical taggant (printed in a small area or mixed with a substrate) will be completely invisible to the naked eye.

Other features such as microtext are somewhat of a grey area. The term microtext is used for slightly larger text than ‘real’ microtext (letter size below 250 micrometres). For example, this could include negative text on security threads or small text on OVDs. In these cases, the feature might be visible even though it may have originally been included within the category of invisible features (microtext that appears from a standard viewing distance as a solid line).

Visible security fibres, despite their name, can be invisible to the naked eye if their contrast to the paper and the print is not clear enough (eg. if the colour is similar to the substrate tint, such as yellow fibre on slightly yellow paper) or when they are heavily overprinted. This is even more pronounced in the case of an overprinted pattern having a similar colour to that of the fibres.

By contrast, a letterpress serial number is a feature that is hard to overlook. However, to classify it clearly as a typical visible feature is problematic as well. While in the past it has been the only means of serialisation, it has lower value today. Personalisation can now be done by digital printing, and with counterfeits that have not passed full laboratory examination, it makes it particularly difficult to determine if the personalisation technique is letterpress or whether it is, for example, a good quality offset print that has been embossed to simulate the letterpress effect.

How many features are there today?

Depending on the literature and methodology of classification (for example, whether it includes or excludes different trademarks, origination methods etc.) the answer to this question can vary significantly, from a few principal categories to dozens of subcategories.

The publicly-accessible database PRADO lists 116 entries, while in commercial databases such as Regula the glossary of security features alone contains 103 entries. However not all entries are security features in their own right (for example, entries such as ‘visa’ or ‘datapage’). It is obvious that if origination is used as a classifier, and combined with a commercial trademark, the quantity of features can extend into the hundreds.

Classifying in too much detail?

Depending on the categories used, features can be grouped fairly generally (eg. print-based features), more precisely (eg. microtext as an example of a printed feature) or even sub-classified (eg. positive microtext and negative microtext).

A good example of detailed classification would be microtext which may be classified only as a generic feature. More precisely though, it can be classified by either intaglio or secure offset print, as positive or negative microtext, with a fixed or variable size and printed with either one ink or in transition from one ink to another.

A combination of all the above will give us 16 different combinations based on visual appearance – and one example can be intaglio-printed positive microtext with variable size print using a transition from one ink to another (as seen in Figure 1).

Figure 1: Microtext, but what else? This feature can also qualify in categories of security features such as multiple colour printing and intaglio printing.

Continued on page 6 >

SPECIAL FEATURE | VOLUME 7 – NO 2 | FEBRUARY 2019

5

The Nature of ID in the Digital Age Reconnaissance’s new Digital Document Security™ Conference (DDS) in Berlin, 13-15 May 2019, will help to answer the question of what will be the nature of ID in the digital age. This conference examines the relationship between the physical and digital domains in document security at a time when smartphones and other devices are taking a growing role in financial transactions and identity confirmation.

There’s a century of experience in identity document security, while the digital ID field has only been going for a few years. Papers in the conference will examine how significant this is, while also giving information on specific technologies and systems to achieve secured document security.

Organisations presenting at the conference span the spectrum from traditional passport producers to new companies providing digital transaction and ID systems. The former include Bundesdruckerei, which is giving two papers – ‘Building Blocks for Digital Transformation of Security Documents’ and ‘10 Years’ Experience with Digital Printing of Polycarbonate’.

Among the organisations offering digital systems are INPI Asia (NDCode: Securing the Link Between Physical Documents and their Digital Data), Global Enterprise Technologies (Digital Identities – The Physical to Digital Transformation), and Onfido (Remote Document Verification Channels and Challenges).

The session on Digital ID opens with a market review and update from ID & Secure Document News™, and includes a paper from Jura titled ‘Using the Face to Enhance Security and Data Storage on Travel Documents’, with the Fraunhofer Institute and Free University Berlin joining forces for a paper titled ‘Digital Identities on Mobile Devices’.

There will also be papers covering the interface of physical and digital, particularly the impact of digital on management or examination of physical documents. For example, U-NICA Solutions combines with the University of Geneva for a paper on ‘Multilevel Digital Security for Physical Documents’. Similarly, the University of South Dakota and the South Dakota School of Mines report their work on NIR-to-NIR upconversion reader systems.

These papers are just a sample of the full twoday programme, which will be supported by a ‘show-and-tell’ table-top exhibition, where presenters and others can allow conference participants to see, handle and learn more about their digital and physical products and systems.

Over 42 organisations have already registered to attend the conference, including national identity authorities, identity document producers and digital systems developers and suppliers. The full programme, with delegate, short course and table-top registration information, is available at digitaldocumentsecurity.com

6 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | CONFERENCE

Travel and ID Documents (Continued) An even more detailed classification would further increase the number of possible categories, as the feature can also be printed with special inks, with certain optical properties that serve as a first level feature (for example colourshifting inks), or that are observable in different wavelengths (for example ultraviolet). This alone gives us dozens of different microtexts.

Aim: exhaustive and exclusive classification?

A common misunderstanding generally derives from the tendency to classify one feature according to only one category, while ignoring the fact that some features can cover multiple levels.

For example, the ink used for printing design elements may have specific infrared or magnetic properties and contain taggants. Or a hologram, in addition to its visual effect, may contain nanotext and intentional errors in the nanotext, and so on.

In such cases, the features would fall into more than one category and in some cases could fall into all the categories, while there is a general tendency to place features arbitrarily in one category. Industry standards such as ISO 12931 and ISO 18013 reflect this correctly and mention that, depending on the method of verification, one element may provide one or more security features and can be included in similar or different categories.

Mobile authentication

Mobile authentication is revolutionising the world of security printing, not only through the way the features are verified, but also through the open pool of people performing examinations – from a few trained inspectors with specialised devices to anybody equipped with a smartphone.

Contrary to the past, where mobile authentication was based on the reading of a QR code (which in itself offers a low value of security and which can therefore hardly authenticate objects – except for cases where codes have not been issued), the possibility to verify in an instant not only the presence of a unique code, but also the specific optical properties of a security feature such as an OVD, is bringing us closer to real authentication with a possible binary response.

Another approach can be based on the detection of latent codes (steganography), which are difficult to reverse.

Currently, mobile authentication does not fulfil the definition of the first level (public) security feature as a required technical tool (smartphone). However, it is a possibility that future mobile authentication might be included in this category or that it could even completely rewrite classifications that have been used for dozens of years.

Conclusion

Various possibilities for classifying security features do not make classification an easy task.

While the classification of security features can be a useful tool to understand the complexity of the security of documents that bear these features, it should not be overstated.

This is even more complicated when taking into consideration the fact that classification has been used for dozens of years without reflecting the introduction of new features, changes in the production of security features and their counterfeiting, detection methods and the way in which features are communicated.

The table below shows the different security levels, how they are classified by the literature and the overlap between the different classifications.

Security features classification Security level

Visibility

1

2

3

4

public

inspection

forensic

manufacturer

Confidentiality Knowledge needed Technical tools

invisible

visible public

confidential/secret

—

minimum

advanced

specialised

(no tool)

simple tool

advanced tool

lab equipment

Table 1: Security features classification.

Company News Evolis Announces Revenue Growth

Silverlake Axis Acquires X Infotech

Evolis has announced that the company has achieved consolidated revenue of €82 million for the 2018 financial year, up 2.5% versus 2017.

Malaysia-based Silverlake Axis (SAL), a leading provider of digital economy solutions and services, has entered into a conditional sale and purchase agreement to acquire an 80% stake in X Infotech Group, a global provider of software solutions for the issuance and verification of digital identity documents and smart cards. The remaining 20% is subject to a put and call option when certain conditions are met in the future.

The company’s Channel business posted revenue of €55.8 million, up 3.7% versus 2017 (+6.8% at constant exchange rates).

Channel business grew in the EMEA region, bolstered by the Edikio solution rollout in Europe, in addition to growth in sales in the Asia-Pacific region.

Full-year revenue for the Projects business ended at €22 million (up by 6.3% at constant exchange rates). The second half of 2018 benefitted from the delivery of two important contracts, one with a large German retail chain for the Edikio solution and another in India with a system integrator.

In 2018, Asia-Pacific (excluding India and China) was the region that recorded the strongest growth, driven by several government and banking projects. The Americas saw growth at 4.4% at current exchange rates (+10.1% at constant exchange rates), benefitting from projects delivered across the continent, as well as second-half momentum in the Channel business in the US. In the EMEA region, Europe stood out, propelled by Edikio, offsetting the decline in business in the Middle East.

Keyfactor Receives $77 Million Investment Cleveland-based Keyfactor, a leading provider of secure digital identity management solutions, has announced that it has closed a $77 million growth funding round with Insight Venture Partners, a leading global venture capital and private equity firm focused on high growth technology and software companies.

Keyfactor will use the investment to continue its market expansion and meet the growing demand for its suite of solutions, including Keyfactor Command (a complete and scalable certificate management platform) and Keyfactor Control (providing end-to-end identity security in the IoT lifecycle). The company has doubled revenue year-over-year and now secures more than 500 million certificates for clients worldwide.

Founded in 2001 as Certified Security Solutions (CSS), Keyfactor recently rebranded in November 2018 to reflect the company's goal of empowering enterprises with the freedom to master every digital identity. The Keyfactor platform automates real-time discovery, monitoring, issuing and replacement of digital certificates and keys while blocking untrusted access.

Onfido brings its cutting-edge expertise and experience in advanced technology including Artificial Intelligence (AI), biometric facial recognition and machine learning.

The joint solution will enable the verification of the user’s ID and ensure the person holding the ID is the same person, by comparing the identity document to a selfie.

The initiative is intended to help financial institutions deliver a hassle-free online experience, boost customer acquisition and improve operational efficiency.

Commenting on the partnership Executive Vice-President for Financial Institutions activities at IDEMIA Pierre Barrial said: ‘we are thrilled to join forces with Onfido in order to meet the requirements and needs of our financial institution customers in remote ID Proofing. Onfido is a perfect complement to the IDEMIA suite of solutions available to the financial market globally. It contributes to strengthen our position as the partner of choice of financial institutions for building security and trust in their digital transformation.’

X Infotech is headquartered in Latvia.

The software solutions offered by the company include citizen and customer identity management, biometric enrolment, document holder biometric verification, document and card personalisation and issuance, mobile and multi-factor user authentication, and PKI applications. X Infotech has successfully implemented projects in more than 45 countries around the world, including Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America. For the 2017 financial year, the company’s proforma consolidated revenue and net asset value were €9.83 million and €3.68 million respectively.

Applied Recognition and Intellicheck Join Forces

The acquisition of the 80% stake in the company comprises an Initial Consideration of €17.6 million, €14.6 million of which would be paid upon completion of the agreement and €3 million of which would be paid in the following two financial years subject to certain growth targets being achieved. It also comprises an Earn-Out Consideration, the amount of which would depend on, among other conditions, whether the company is able to undertake an Initial Public Offering (IPO) on an established and recognised stock exchange such as the Singapore or Hong Kong stock exchanges by 31 December 2021.

The acquisition of X Infotech is expected to significantly enhance and expand SAL’s digital economy offerings to its customers’ ecosystems, particularly in the areas of public and private enterprise digital identity solutions for customer identity economics, social and financial inclusion, security, and payments applications. SAL Group will extend its geographical coverage and business operations internationally with more than 380 enterprise customers in over 80 countries.

IDEMIA Partners with Onfido IDEMIA has announced a partnership with London-based Onfido to enhance digital identity verification and customer onboarding for financial institutions.

Canada-based Applied Recognition and US-based Intellicheck have announced a new partnership to advance digital identity authentication. The companies will incorporate one another’s technology into their respective product offerings, combining barcoded identity authentication with facial recognition. According to the companies, the combined comprehensive technology solutions will heighten identity theft protection, curbing fraudsters' ability to manipulate document, photo and video authentication to perpetrate financial and retail fraud.

The solutions will feature the user capturing the front and rear image of a barcoded photo ID and then a selfie, both taken using a mobile device’s camera. The submitted information is rapidly analysed for barcode authentication, optical character recognition (OCR) validation and scoring, and face-recognition-powered comparison of the selfie to the ID’s photo.

Collectively, the tests ensure a valid identity authentication.

The combined technology solutions will advance identity authentication and deliver a low-cost solution for the financial services and retail industries, addressing legal, regulatory and know-your-customer (KYC) requirements, as well as providing powerful anti-fraud protection.

COMPANY NEWS | VOLUME 7 – NO 2 | FEBRUARY 2019

7

Distilled Identity and Emerge Develop ID Platform Distilled Identity, a US-based supplier of digital identity solutions, has entered into a partnership with Emerge, provider of blockchain-based solutions, to develop a government-recognised identity platform and management system for forcibly displaced persons. Named Homeward, the platform compiles physical and behavioural biometric data into a smart contract in order to provide refugees with self-sovereign identity.

According the UNHCR Annual Report for 2017 and UNICEF Brief of Children on the Move, in 2017 68.5 million people were forcibly displaced, with 21 million of those identified as refugees and less than 103,000 of those individuals resettled.

Additionally, displaced people often face another challenge as they are unable to present themselves as valuable contributors to a host country.

Homeward provides matched cities with a summary profile on their new residents, to ensure officials can better triage support services and provide a customised welcome experience conducive to quicker independence.

By factoring in more cities, the platform has been designed to disperse claims away from overburdened cities, while allowing other cities to benefit from the potential influx of talent. The technologies that power the platform include distilled predictive identity, IoT security solutions, blockchain, and IBM Watson.

Homeward includes a multi-layered identity profile made up of physical biometric data, employability potential and socio-cultural preferences data, behavioural biometrics, geospatio-temporal data, and a smart contract-based public key infrastructure

to form a unique, self-managed digital ID for each primary claimant. A claimant’s employability and preferences data are used to determine a match to an optimal city for resettlement.

Other factors included in determining the optimal match include destination city quotas, destination city’s cultural community sizes, population density, local economy data, age dependency ratios, and family size to ensure families stay together.

Phase one of the Homeward project pilot will begin in April 2019, targeting approximately 20,000 refugees, pulling half of these displaced from the conflict in Syria and the other half to include economic migrants from Central America and the Caribbean. Later phases will pull another 10,000 refugees.

Events

25–27 MARCH 2019 Publisher: Reconnaissance International Ltd. Editor: Micaal Sidorov (right).

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8 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | TECHNOLOGY NEWS

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CONNECT:ID CONFERENCE Washington DC, USA www.terrapinn.com/exhibition/connect-id

13–15 MAY 2019

DIGITAL DOCUMENT SECURITY Berlin, Germany www.digitaldocumentsecurity.com

29–30 MAY 2019

SECURE IDENTIFICATION Riga, Latvia www.secureidentification.lv

3–5 JUNE 2019

HIGH SECURITY PRINTING LATIN AMERICA San Jose, Costa Rica www.hsp-latinamerica.com

11–13 JUNE 2019

SECURITY DOCUMENT WORLD London, UK www.terrapinn.com/exhibition/ identity-week/SDW-2019.stm Our printer Colyer Group is ISO:14001 certified for environmental standards, and also FSC Forestry certified – ensuring all our media comes from sustainable sources.

VOLUME 7 – NO 3 / MARCH 2019

EU Reaches Agreement on Boosting ID Card Security

Use of eGates Doubles SITA, a multinational information technology company providing IT and telecommunication services to the air transport industry, has published its 2019 Passenger IT Insights Report, which points out that the use of automated passport control technology by airline passengers nearly doubled in 2018, from 23% to 44%, while passenger satisfaction has improved.

According to SITA, more than 90% of travellers opt to use biometric self-service processes when given the choice.

Representatives for the EU Presidency and European Parliament have reached an agreement on boosting the security of EU identity cards and residency documents. The informal agreement, designed to curtail identity fraud across the bloc, introduces minimum standards for security features in identity documents and sets out guidelines for the information they must contain.

While the EU has common security standards in place governing the makeup of passports, visas and residency documents for non-EU nationals living or working in member states, no such standards currently exist for national ID cards and residency documents belonging to EU citizens and their families.

Under the agreed provisional measures, which are to be presented to member state ambassadors for confirmation, identity cards must adhere to a uniform credit card-style format, with a machine-readable zone, a contactless chip, a photograph of the card holder and two fingerprints. They must also include the country code of the member state in which they are issued.

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ID cards already in circulation which do not meet the new standards will become fully invalid either 10 years after the date of application or at their stated expiry date, whichever is earlier. Cards held by citizens over the age of 70 will remain valid until their expiry as long as they meet the minimum security standards.

The proposal, which will enter into force two years after it is formally adopted, does not require member states to introduce ID cards if they are not already required under national legislation.

Commenting on the development, Romanian Minister of Internal Affairs Carmen Daniela Dan said: ‘security throughout the EU can only be achieved by ensuring security in each member state.

The new rules on security standards for ID documents will allow us to more easily detect document fraud and identity theft, making it harder for terrorists and criminals to act, while facilitating free movement of genuine travellers.’

The report shows customers using selfservice gates for passport verification were 3.85% more satisfied with their experience than those who did not, rating it on average an 8.36 out of 10.

Satisfaction was also higher for those scanning their own documents for boarding processes, by 2.2%.

‘One of the standout findings of our report this year is that at every point in the journey, where passengers use technology, the rate of satisfaction is higher,’ notes SITA President of Air Travel Solutions, Matthys Serfontein.

‘Airlines and airports can see the benefit of their technology investments in making it easy for passengers, every step of the way. Over the years, booking, check-in and bag drop have increasingly become automated and passengers like it. Interestingly, this year the report shows how introducing automated passport controls, in collaboration with government and border agencies, also increases passenger satisfaction.’

The report also points out that a majority of consumers (59%) are ‘very willing’ to use their smartphones for ID verification, and another third are open to doing so.

Nepal to Set Up Security Printing Facility Nepal's government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with France's IN Groupe to establish its own state-of-the-art security printing facility for the production of passports and secure documents.

According to Nepal’s government, in the absence of a dedicated security printing facility, the government and private firms are spending billions of rupees abroad annually.

Once Nepal sets up its own production factory, passports, national identity cards, birth certificates and ballot papers, among others, can be printed in the country.

Bikal Poudel, Head of the Security Printing Division under the Ministry of Information and Communications, who signed the memorandum on behalf of Nepal, said a detailed project report has already been prepared and the facility is likely to be set up at the Information and Technology Park in Banepa, Kavre.

The officials said once negotiations are completed on financial modality – whether it will be a technology transfer based on a build-operate-and-transfer model

Inside this Issue 1 EU Reaches Agreement on Boosting ID Card Security

1 Use of eGates Doubles 2 Nepal to Set Up

Security Printing Facility

2 Gemalto Creates

Security Experts Unit

3 News in Brief 4 Tanzania, Estonia and

EU Celebrate ID Awards in Malta

6 Digital ID Documents are Coming

7 Philippines Reviewing Legality of ePassport Production Deal

8 Estonia Rejects

Appeal to Declare ID Card Contract Void

2 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | MARKET NEWS

or foreign direct investment or a French loan and French aid – Nepal and France will sign the final agreement during Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s upcoming visit to France in June.

The initiative includes setting up currency production facilities although it remains unclear at the moment how IN Groupe might be involved, given that the company does not produce or supply banknotes.

Earlier, the Ministry of Information and Communications had held negotiations with the German government to set up domestic document production facilities, but the deal could not move forward due to reasons related to financial arrangements, amongst others. IN Groupe then came forward, showing its interest to assist Nepal in setting up the security printing facilities.

Nepal’s vision is to become self-sufficient within 5 years of setting up the facilities and to start exporting secure documents to neighbouring countries in the region within 10 years, and other countries within 15 years.

Technical details are also yet to be agreed.

According to initial estimates, the project could cost around $300 million.

Following the introduction of relevant legislation in 2016, Nepal has set up a Security Printing Development Committee and consequently a Security Printing Centre (SPC) with a view to developing policies, budget and programmes, as well as physical infrastructure related to secure document production facilities.

Around 15 hectares of land have been allocated to setting up the SPC, with several tenders for purchasing equipment expected to be released within the next year or so.

In the initial operational phase of the SPC, around 500 staff are expected to be employed directly, with about 25,000 people engaged indirectly from stakeholders’ institutions. According to the government, around NPR 1 billion ($9 million) can be expected to be collected by the national treasury as a result of the project.

Gemalto Creates Security Experts Unit Gemalto has created an independent experts’ unit dedicated to the company’s portfolio of physical components, security features, software and issuance solutions for secure credentials such as passports, ID cards and health cards.

According to the company, the Secure Component Solutions Unit will enable customers to benefit from Gemalto’s advanced technologies and techniques, incorporating them into secure document programmes swiftly and efficiently. Access to Gemalto’s latest security solutions will also help them to maintain the highest standards of protection against fraud and forgery.

Designed to complement Gemalto’s comprehensive solutions, the new unit draws on a range of over 40 industryproven security components and features, encompassing printing, production and verification methods necessary to frustrate today’s counterfeiters.

Highlights include Gemalto’s polycarbonate data pages with integrated hinges, and Colour Laser Shield, the company’s unique means of securing high-resolution colour portraits inside polycarbonate documents.

Reflecting the rapid shift to electronic documents, customers will also be able to choose from inlays, eCovers, and eDatapages with embedded microchips that employ Gemalto’s proprietary, ICAOcompliant eTravel software.

Gemalto says the new Secure Component Solutions Group leverages very robust and global experience in the high security printing industry, including unrivalled commitment to research and development, active involvement in international standards organisations, and participation in over 200 current customer programmes. To ensure clients can realise the full potential of the company’s expertise, the unit’s specialist staff will deliver in-depth technical advice, training and knowledge transfer.

Commenting on the development Gemalto’s Senior Vice President, ID Documents & Solutions Business line, Government Programs, Youzec Kurp said: ‘high security printing is embedded in Gemalto’s DNA – we have 160 years’ experience thanks to our strategic acquisitions. Our new dedicated unit will provide all the technical training and process knowledge necessary to ensure that customers can either integrate our technology components into their products or move further up the value chain by manufacturing such solutions themselves.

Whatever path our clients choose to go down, they are assured of the most secure and efficient end result possible.’

News in Brief Japan to Broaden Use of ID Cards The Japanese government has announced plans to have all hospitals accept national ID cards in place of standard insurance cards starting in March 2021, aiming to boost their poor adoption rate and accelerate the country's digital transition.

A patient going to a hospital will be able to scan the chip-equipped ‘My Number’ card at the reception desk, and insurance information will be sent automatically to the facility.

The change is part of a planned push for broader use of the national ID cards. The My Number programme is meant to play a central role in the government's shift to digitisation as it works to make Japan a world-class technology power. All citizens and long-term residents are assigned a number, but a person is only issued a physical card if they apply for one. Just 15.64 million cards – equivalent to about 12% of Japan's population – have been issued to date, over three years since the scheme was launched.

According to the Ministry, the tasks that must be completed in the first stage are legislative drafting preparations and the development of telecommunications and information technology used in identification registration.

The reform of the country’s identification management system is seen as a priority for the government in its sixth mandate, as the system is considered the backbone of all public and private service provision systems.

NIRA says one of the main reasons Ugandans do not register for NINs is that people are reluctant to register the birth of their children at the district offices.

NIRA also says its district officers are understaffed, with most of them only having two or three officers out of the approved structure of five. Consequently, with production capacity of 24,000 cards per day, many offices on average issue only 1,200 cards.

Angola to Introduce ePassport

UK to Open ePassport Gates to Non-EU Nationals

The Ministry says that it usually prioritises addressing and pushing forward identification-related tasks based on the national strategic plan on identification, which the government has already adopted.

The Angolan government has announced plans to start issuing biometric passports with enhanced security features as part of its initiative to provide a more secure travel document and facilitate passenger travel.

The UK Secretary of State has signed an order mandating the expansion of countries whose nationals will be eligible to use ePassport gates to enter the UK from summer 2019.

The ePassport will be embedded with a microchip that stores the holder’s personal information, fingerprint scans, photo and a digital signature from the issuing agency.

The legislation states that nationals of the US, Canada, New Zealand, Australia and Japan, as well as Singapore and South Korea, will be added to the list of countries that can use them. Travelers who do not have a visa will get an automatic permit valid for six months to enter the country as a standard visitor.

According to the country’s Foreigners Migration Service (SME), the relevant amendment of the passport law will be adopted very soon to move from the current document to the biometric passport.

The change will include three levels of visual security, verifiable through electronic and security equipment and through specific forensic techniques.

Japanese My Number card.

To lift this figure, the government aims to have the cards serve as identification for not only administrative purposes such as tax collection, but private-sector services as well.

Tokyo will encourage both hospitals and health insurance providers to participate in the shift. Switching to the My Number system will save the latter group the cost of printing their own insurance cards.

Electronic insurance data will also be linked to treatment records, giving doctors an easy way to view the medical histories of consenting patients.

Cambodia Delays Implementation of National Strategic ID Plan Cambodia’s Ministry of Interior has announced that the National Strategic Plan on Identification has stalled due to the current political situation, the government’s various other priorities and the upcoming elections.

According to NIRA, at least 2.4 million Ugandans aged 16 and above have not enrolled for the national ID cards and 16.5 million people are yet to enrol for the allocation of NINs.

UK’s ePassport gates are currently available for British, Swiss and European Economic Area nationals only.

Uganda Launches Nationwide Registration for IDs Uganda’s National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA) has commenced a three-month massive registration of citizens to be enrolled on the national register and for issuance of National Identification Numbers (NINs).

Ugandans aged 16 and above who register during the exercise will have their national ID cards processed and issued thereafter.

Unlike previously where people were registered at village level, the exercise will be done at the sub-county/town council level in the districts, and also at division offices at Kampala Capital City Authority and municipalities.

According to the government, the proposals are built on those set out in the budget.

The intention is that by allowing nationals from the seven countries to use automated passport gates, the government will demonstrate its commitment to developing a new global immigration system as the UK prepares to leave the EU.

Out of the 17.5 million national IDs that have been printed, 14.6 million cards had been issued by January 2019, leaving a pending lot of 2.2 million cards that have not yet been picked up by their owners.

An estimated additional 6.5 million passengers per year will be able to take an automated route through the UK border as part of the government’s ongoing work to ease the passage for legitimate travellers.

NEWS IN BRIEF | VOLUME 7 – NO 3 | MARCH 2019

3

Tanzania, Estonia and EU Celebrate ID Awards in Malta The transformational project has been instigated by the Department of Immigration of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Tanzania and delivered by HID Global, their local partner Softnet with booklet manufacture

by DLRS Security Concepts (now Smurfit Kappa Security Concepts) and design by Absolute Graphics.

The award was presented to Tanzania’s Commissioner of Immigration for Passports and Citizenship, Gerald Kihinga, and Henry Mkuzi of HID Global.

Estonia’s new eID cards Tanzania’s Commissioner of Immigration for Passports and Citizenship, Gerald Kihinga, along with representatives from HID Global and Softnet celebrating their award at HSP EMEA in Malta.

Tanzania’s new ePassport, Estonia’s new national eID card and the new EU visa project have been recognised as best in class at a prestigious ID awards event.

Reconnaissance, the organisers of High Security Printing™ EMEA, revealed the 2019 winners of the Regional ID Document of the Year awards at a special ceremony during the conference in Malta on 26 March. This award recognises outstanding achievement and technical sophistication of a document and promotes the best in system infrastructure and implementation of a government passport or national identity card scheme.

The first award went to the Immigration Department of the Ministry of Home Affairs of Tanzania for the new Tanzanian ePassport.

Tanzania as moved from an MRP booklet to a phased implementation of a complete eImmigration system in January 2018, with the first stage of the project, including the issuance of the first ePassports, lasting only four months from contract award to completion.

The new ePassport features a polycarbonate datapage incorporating laser engraving technology, an optically variable feature and positive and negative embossing incorporating an MLI lens. The datapage also carries an ICAO-compliant secure RFID microcontroller chip and operating system with ICAO LDS 1.7 as well as BAC, EAC and the latest SAC/PACE security mechanisms, certified up to EAL6+.

The design of the booklet captures local themes and cultures across the visa pages, datapage and end papers, helping to engender a sense of national pride in the carrier. Notable features include end papers with duplex security patterns and rainbow split duct printing, and two-colour intaglio

4 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | INDUSTRY AWARDS

printing incorporating a latent image and an optically variable print feature. Among the security features on the visa pages are rainbow split duct printing in both visible and invisible inks, Foredge registration feature and hidden page identifiers.

The second award went to the Police and Border Guard Board (PPA) of Estonia’s Ministry of Interior for the new national eID card.

The PPA introduced new national eID cards with upgraded design and security features in December 2018. It took 18 months to prepare the new eID document.

Both internal and external experts were consulted when drawing up the new card’s design and choosing the security elements, including the Estonian Forensic Science Institute and Enterprise Estonia.

The new cards utilise Estonia’s own font and elements of its brand, and feature a colour photo, a transparent window and an invisible secondary photograph that will only appear when viewed from an angle.

One new detail is the inclusion of a QR code, which will make it easier to check the validity of the ID card.

Tanzania’s new ePassport.

One of the benefits of the new ePassport solution is that the holder can have an emergency passport on their smartphone, if their passport is stolen or lost in another country. This passport, verifiable electronically by the embassy, allows the traveller to obtain the necessary document to return home or request a replacement passport without the need for further online checks, filling out forms or other timeconsuming tasks. The mobile emergency passport has been developed using HID’s mobile goID solution. The new ePassport will, at the same time, make travel easier for the country’s citizens, through the use of automated border control stations.

The passport booklet is one component of an end to end system solution to support the enrolment, adjudication, personalisation, issuance and authentication of the ePassport, plus border control and eVisa systems.

Estonia’s new national eID card.

The eID card also integrates a new chip that will allow contactless use in the future, once service providers start offering corresponding solutions – such as validating public transport trips. The new chip will retain the traditional interface and can still be used in ID card readers. The chip is able to carry more information and is compatible with new applications, like electronic public transport tickets or other kinds of electronic certification. Giving and reading digital signatures will be possible using the traditional interface only.

Estonia is considered to have one of the most highly-developed national ID card systems in the world. Much more than a legal photo ID, the mandatory national card also provides digital access to all of Estonia’s secure eServices. Nearly 5,000 separate such services enable people to run their daily errands without having to get off their computers at home.

They can enter into agreements, sign documents, submit various applications, and use digital channels and means to communicate with various state authorities and service providers.

The chip on the new card carries embedded files, and using 2048-bit public key encryption, it can be used as definitive proof of ID in an electronic environment. Thanks to the ID card, Estonia has one of the world’s most advanced digital signature systems. As of January this year, there are approximately 1.3 million ID cards being used in Estonia, which constitutes nearly 98% of the entire population of the country.

The award was presented to Eliisa Sau, Chief Expert of the Police and Border Guard Board of Estonia, and Michal Grochowoski, Area Sales Director at IDEMIA who supply the new document.

New EU Visa sticker

The final award went to Germany’s Bundeskriminalamt, the Federal Criminal Police Office and Bundesdruckerei, the country’s federal printer and manufacturer of banknotes, passports and ID cards, for the new EU Visa sticker project.

The development project lasted about 11 months and was finished within time and on budget with a successful outcome and the issuance of a ‘best practice’ visa kit and technical specifications for 31 EU member and associate states. The visa kit and technical specifications will also be used as a best practice basis for the subsequent eResidence permit card project.

The involved the integration of some additional ideas from the other member states as well, in order to create a project involving all concerned – which created team spirit. Suggestions came from a number of countries including Italy, Hungary and the UK. The approval at the production stage also involved an invitation for the Subgroup to come to Berlin to sign off the progress.

This collaboration increased the level of the security features, the security concept specification, and the design and quality of the document. The new sticker integrates improved chemical sensitisers, high level security background design, a completely re-designed DOVID with improved features, improved intaglio inks and latent images, rip cuts and advanced UV elements. The sticker also has a ‘quiet zone’ reserved for a 2D barcode in order to upgrade and secure the personalisation of the sticker, which is seen as a good next step to incorporate digital security into the security document world.

As part of the EU Commission Action Plan to strengthen the EU response to travel document fraud, all European member states will be introducing the new EU Visa sticker in 2019. The project was a result of the collective work done by the EU Article 6 Committee and associated Subgroup with regard to the development of an improved uniform format visa.

Following a contest and a presentation from each member state, as well as a subsequent voting on seven different categories with regard to the visa (substrate, DOVID, features, personalisation etc.), Germany was chosen as having the best concept, while also winning six of the seven categories outright.

It was decided by the member states not just to write the technical specification, but also to improve the quality of the visa stickers and limit variation by running a development project to produce a zero series/pilot project – which would then be used as the baseline for member states and producers to adhere to. The project, funded by the EU, was awarded to and run by the Bundeskriminalamt and Bundesdruckerei together.

Philippines Reviewing Legality of ePassport Production Deal The Philippines’ Malacañan Palace, the official residence and principal workplace of the President of the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte, says it is currently reviewing the legality of the joint venture agreement between APO Production Unit, Inc (APUI), based in Batangas, and United Graphic Expression Corporation (UGEC), based in Dasmariñas, on passport production.

In a press briefing, Presidential Spokesperson Salvador S Panelo said his office has already received a copy of the joint venture contract and is evaluating whether it contravenes the intent of the law.

He added that their assessment so far points to the need for the submission of other documents, such as the original contract between the foreign corporation that was handling it before it was taken over by APUI. According to the Philippines’ former Foreign Affairs Secretary Perfecto R Yasay, Jr, in 2015 the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) awarded the operation of the electronic passport system to staterun APUI, an agency of the Presidential Communications Operations Office, without a bidding process, on the condition that no part of the contract could be subcontracted or assigned to a private printer.

Yasay says that in stark violation of that condition, APUI engaged the services of UGEC for the production of the new ePassports, adding that the contract to APUI was awarded amid a still subsisting contract from 2006 between the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, Philippines’ central bank, and France’s Oberthur Fiduciare.

The new EU Visa sticker.

The project is a good example of the concept of Europe working together on an issue which concerns all member states, driving through the necessary factors for the good of all whilst taking into account the compromises needed and involved in successful partnerships.

The award was presented to Dr Anna Wandschneider of Bundeskriminalamt, Duncan Faulkner of Bundesdruckerei and Francis Deschrijvere of the European Commission.

Yasay also pointed out that in February 2017, Panelo, as Chief Presidential Legal Counsel, determined that the assignment of the passport printing services to UGEC was illegal and demanded that all rights pertaining to personal data, the data centre and other information relating to the performance of the ePassport printing services unlawfully subcontracted to UGEC, be reconveyed to the DFA or be acknowledged to be exclusively owned and controlled by the DFA. In response Panelo explained that his previous opinion on the matter was not conclusive because it was based on incomplete documents.

VOLUME 7 – NO 3 | MARCH 2019

5

Digital ID Documents are Coming

By Achim Hildebrandt, Former Head of Passports and ID Cards, Federal Ministry of the Interior, Germany Digital ID documents are coming, and this is an undisputed fact, but the question today is that of how quickly and precisely when we will reach the point of no return. Many speak of co-existence these days, as well as dual or even ambidextrous solutions.

But no matter how this impending transformation is described, it is certain that it will take place.

The first applications are already with us and are triggering questions related to the future of ID and secure documents. The answers delivered up to now, however, are neither coherent nor sustainable. It appears the time is not right yet.

The baseline

Our current ID documents are the best the world has ever seen – more complex in terms of production and security than ever before, and more travel and user-friendly than ever.

Both the integration of chips into documents and the related production and security systems, as well as the innovative use systems based on it, are revolutionising ID documents. Unlike in past times, documents will not be presented primarily for inspection by authorised parties (eg. at borders), but will themselves become active ‘door openers’, with eGate solutions being one particularly striking example.

Another revolutionary aspect is the automated biometric comparison of the photo in the passport with the passport holder’s face. Controllers can now focus on other tasks relating to streamlining processes, which is also the goal in light of growing traveller numbers.

We have seen breakthroughs in progress on international standardisation thanks to extremely constructive interaction between ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organisation), the highest standardisation body for all types of personal ID documents intended for international border traffic, and ISO/IEC (International Standardisation Organisation/International Electrotechnical Commission), the most important international standardisation body for all technical matters, which is also responsible for the technical standards of today’s ID documents.

The international co-operation between these two organisations was mirrored in Germany, where the Federal Ministry of the Interior (BMI), in close co-operation with the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) and the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), collaborated with several

6 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | VIEWPOINT

committees of DIN, Germany’s ISO/IECrelevant standardisation organisation. This collaboration is ongoing, as rapid technical and security developments mean that it is necessary time and again to integrate improvements and innovations into existing standards or develop new ones.

The production and security potential of ID documents largely use everything that can be harnessed with known technologies.

There is much to indicate that the potential offered by what is used in modern passports, ID cards and analogue ID will be exhausted in qualitative terms.

Further developments will be derived from new sources – outside the realm of traditional security printing. Whether these will be in the form of another photo, or a particular feature, or whether they will be flashing or dazzling, with real, apparent or truly novel value, is not so important in qualitative terms – in fact, to put it bluntly, it is irrelevant.

Something else to consider is that the more individual innovative features there are on passports, the less suitable they become for checking at international borders. With mass control processes, the many devices available at airports are only helpful when suspicion arises.

Today, innovation rightly, rather than due to necessity, focuses on combining or recombining what has been tried and tested.

The new EU visa and also the new German passport introduced in 2016 are examples of this hybrid approach. Tried-and-tested elements have been adapted and recombined in both of these documents,

which offer outstanding protection against forgery – which essentially means keeping well ahead of counterfeit and imitation documents.

Consequently, tomorrow’s truly new security gains will be generated less from the existing and traditional portfolio and more from new technologies. In essence, it is about holistic or eSystem solutions which are not unknown in the first place. However, the time has come to put smart solutions to work. Further qualitative developments can therefore be generated.

What lies ahead

The concept of further developments achieved by consistently expanding security requirements to cover the entire process, eg. beginning with proof of birth – is not a new concept.

The topic of further developments from the entire chain of producing passports, ID cards and similar documents is not a new idea either. One example is the requirement for documents and processes underlying the applications to be protected in a passport-enabled form in order to secure the documents themselves and to regard them as part of the security system.

The European Commission addressed this need in 2016, where the focus was on the entire life and effectiveness of the documents. The paper from the European Commission was well received, albeit with no or only hesitant far-reaching consequences. Nevertheless, it is a good starting point for tackling this security question, and not only via physical documents.

There will be a more overarching mindset here. One of the primordial pieces of wisdom around document security is that if the ‘wrong person’ gets hold of a highsecurity ID document, security becomes obsolete. Such conventional thinking often hinders new approaches.

Unfortunately, the idea that ‘we have always done it that way’ is deeply rooted in us and our industry often thinks and acts in line with the structure of sales portfolios. That is fairly normal thinking, so it will be up to governments to demand something new.

Connecting eProcesses and databases

eProcesses and databases are redefining – and will continue to redefine – ID security, ID verification as well as ID in general and they will open up and generate security.

The real brake – ie. an ideology-loaded general fear of surveillance – will give way to solutions that comply with data protection laws – as can be been seen in practice.

The EU mindset and decisions are another example of this. The European database systems VIS, the Entry/Exit System and the EU ESTA will, in addition to their own original function, generate security by connecting travel documents and electronic verification mechanisms.

In practice, even a perfectly forged EU visa is worthless if it cannot be found in the database system. Fears, including those related to the strikingly popular and quickly used big data argument, will disappear.

The use of modern technologies to serve the welfare and security of citizens will also prevail here.

One outstanding example of this is biometrics, which up until 9/11 was heavily weighed down by aversion. It was seen as a no-go topic in some places and caused a lot of smirking expressions in others. But the negative prophecies about biometrics did not come about.

On the contrary, biometric passports now create security as well as convenience and comfort for travellers, thanks to the option of eGate solutions. And nobody wishes to return to how things were before. Without 9/11, this would have taken much longer to accomplish.

The use of information from EU database systems to compare information on travellers at borders has long extended to checking the authenticity of travel documents and whether such documents belong to the holder and, of course, whether the holder is on a wanted list.

What’s new here is being able to see whether the document, such as a visa, for instance, was ever issued. Being able to check whether the document presented

is valid at all is what makes forgeries worthless.

We can see new applications emerging from NFC technology. Mobile phones will now be able to really serve as control devices and will be used on site, for instance, for biometric comparison of the passport photo on the chip with the real person. This opens up significantly improved control possibilities at borders, and on trains and buses. Up until now, it was left to the human eye to compare the photo and the individual.

Smart solutions

Smart processes will also change ID and how it is verified. They will become an integral part of ID document security, not only in terms of the documents themselves but also in terms of the entire process of creating ID documents, right through to use and verification.

Several approaches are emerging. The first is transferring ID to a mobile phone – a transfer solution. The physical ID document is integrated into a smartphone or a tablet.

The mobile phone solution for the Kosovo driving licence is one example of this.

These approaches, step-over or mobile phone transfer, are solutions in the field. It remains to be seen how they will develop, and how they are accepted by users. Both approaches must first pass the test of life.

The step-over solution, for instance, could have an important role to play in considerations concerning an eVisa. The Visa Information System (VIS) is already in place. This system contains visas, or what could be eVisas. All that’s needed are regulations concerning the query process and who is permitted to query and what. All those entitled to check visas today should be permitted to submit queries in this case.

A new mindset is needed here.

However, aspects of data protection, which do not apply to physical visas today, should not artificially complicate the process. The European Commission will have to consider this in the study on eVisa that is currently underway.

Conclusion

When it comes to looking to the future, futurologists believe that a period of five years is reasonably realistic due to the rapid pace of technological developments.

The solution is based on OeSD’s MIA product – identity verification via your smartphone. The driving licence is securely stored on the mobile phone and can be read from a mobile phone during checks.

The physical driving licence remains at the holder’s home and could – at least that’s the idea – be completely phased out in the long run.

This already confirms the consensus that over the next few years conventional ID documents as we know them today will still continue to exist. Simply because they are here. Passports currently issued are valid for ten years in most cases. Any answers to how transformation will take place during this time still remain vague, even when smart processes are considered.

Finland also has a solution with this kind of approach and has amended its driving licence law to facilitate this. Finnish drivers can present their driving licence using an app installed on a smartphone or other mobile device. This solution is both voluntary and free of charge in Finland.

There are two paths that lead us closer to answers. The first path involves staying interested, being clever, waiting, watching, and when there is enough clarity, being able to respond. The second path involves a proactive approach, which means processing and preparing your leading position in terms of knowledge and time beginning at the point where there is clarity.

There is no certainty that the second path, which certainly requires funding, will pay off.

The same is true for the first path. Being right on time though has always paid off!

Lithuania is pursuing a different approach with a step-over solution. There, neither the driving licence nor an electronic version is required on the driver’s mobile phone.

During checks, drivers provide their name and, if necessary, show their ID card. In this case, Lithuania skips the step from the physical document to the mobile phone solution by creating the electronic driving licence by way of access to a database.

This solution currently only works for Lithuania because other countries cannot access the Lithuanian database. What’s more, there is no real demand for such an extension at this point in time. Lithuanians travelling abroad by car require a conventional driving licence.

Until March Mr Hildebrandt served as Ministerialrat in the Federal Ministry of the Interior in Berlin, Germany. He was head of Passport and ID Cards. Mr Hildebrandt is now a member of the advisory team of the Czech Government in Prague and is also the Senior Advisor at Gradus Proximus, Corporate advisory GmbH, in Vienna, Austria. He is still actively engaged in physical and digital identification topics, as well as ID and eID applications related to smart city projects.

VIEWPOINT | VOLUME 7 – NO 3 | MARCH 2019

7

Estonia Rejects Appeal to Declare ID Card Contract Void Estonia’s Supreme Court has rejected an appeal by Gemalto regarding the public tender for the supply of the country’s new national ID cards launched in December last year to Estonia's Police and Border Guard Board (PPA).

The case is now going back to the Tallinn District Court.

The PPA and Oberthur Technologies, which has since merged with Safran Morpho and changed its name to IDEMIA, signed an agreement in April 2017 according to which Oberthur Technologies would produce ID cards, residence permit cards, digital IDs

and diplomatic IDs for Estonia after the agreement with the current manufacturer, Gemalto, expired at the end of 2018.

IDEMIA is now responsible for the production of the card, the chip, and linking the document to personal data. It is also responsible for the functioning of the cards. The five-year contract is valued at approximately €40 million.

Gemalto, who produced Estonian ID cards from 2001 onwards, took the matter to court, where it sought to have the procurement contract concluded with the new manufacturer declared null and void.

Events

29 APRIL – 1 MAY 2019 Publisher: Reconnaissance International Ltd. Editor: Micaal Sidorov (right).

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VOLUME 7 – NO 4 / APRIL 2019

AI-Based Biometrics to Transform Travel

Uganda’s ePassport Project to Cost $16 Million Uganda's Directorate of Citizenship and Immigration Control has said the country will need to raise at least 60 billion schillings ($16 million) in order to implement its ePassport project.

Acuity Market Intelligence’s forecast of airport biometric automation growth.

US-based market research consultancy Acuity Market Intelligence has forecast that as airports across the globe invest in a range of smart technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI) and biometrics, this will transform airport travel, with the total number of airport biometric touchpoints – at check-in, bag drop, security and boarding gates – increasing at a 27% CAGR between 2019 and 2022.

While this is a significant growth, the total number of check-in, auto bag drop, border control and security checkpoints, and boarding kiosks and eGates deployed by 2020 will represent just 17% penetration of the projected Total Addressable Market (TAM). Acuity estimates that by 2022 the market will have generated more than $1.3 billion in revenue.

Europe will continue to be the leader, with revenues for Automated Biometric Facilitation solutions growing at a healthy 18.4% CAGR. Europe’s annual revenues will more than double by 2020, accounting for more than 30% of global revenue as well as total units deployed.

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However, given the projected growth of airport infrastructure and air passenger numbers in Asia, these market dynamics will shift significantly by 2030.

‘As airport AI-enhanced biometrics become mainstream, so too will consumer comfort and preference for the convenience of the experience,’ said Maxine Most, Principal at Acuity Market Intelligence. ‘This will change passenger expectations and drive demand for similar solutions within airports and across the entire travel sector, from cruise ships and car rentals to train stations and ferry terminals. Smarter, seamless travel is no longer a vision for the future. It is happening now all over the world.’

According to reports, Tokyo's Narita Airport plans to be the first in the world to allow passengers to board using facial biometrics without pausing for identification, in addition to using facial biometrics for check-in and bag drop.

Meanwhile, AirAsia is piloting facial recognition for boarding flights at Johor's Senai Airport and has plans to continue rolling it out in other airports in Malaysia this year. Hong Kong Airport plans to launch a facial recognition-based, single token identity system by early 2020.

Uganda’s implementation of the electronic passport follows the 17th Ordinary Summit of the East African Community Heads of State held in March 2016, that saw the launch of the new EAC ePassport, with the member nations’ leaders agreeing to the commencement of the issuance of the new international EAC ePassport to take effect on 1 January 2019. The government intends to phase out nonelectronic passports by 2021 in line with the 15 January 2021 deadline set by the EAC. The development saw the government announce changes in prices for the ePassports, in a bid the Internal Affairs Ministry argued is intended to generate non-tax revenue, with the ordinary 48page passport priced at around $67, the ordinary 64-page passport priced at $80, the official or service 64-page passport at $106 and the diplomatic 64-page passport at $133.

The ePassport will have an embedded electronic microprocessor with the biometric data of the holder. According to the government, with the National Identification Registration Authority (NIRA) having already harvested the data to a central database, the applicants will not be required to go through the same process they went through in getting their national IDs.

Sweden to Reform National ID Legislation A government inquiry in Sweden has called for a stop to the use of driving licences as ID documents, and for a new regulation on ID cards in a bid to tackle identity fraud.

Only these police-issued ID cards and passports should be accepted as ID in situations requiring secure identification, it said, rather than driving licences or other documents.

Like the ID card currently issued by the Tax Agency, the proposed ID card will only be for residents of Sweden officially registered in the country's population register and issued with a personal identity number.

Currently, there are multiple different documents that can be accepted as identification in the country, including driving licences, cards issued by some banks, and the ID cards currently issued by the Swedish Tax Agency Skatteverket.

Commenting on the new proposal, Interior Minister Mikael Damberg said: ‘fraud committed through the use of false or stolen ID documents is a growing problem. With these suggestions from the government inquiry, the state is taking control of Swedish ID documents.’

The document will not be available for people with a coordination number (samordningsnummer) and/or those who are intending to be in the country for less than a year, such as temporary workers.

Since 2008 the latter have been available to non-residents of Sweden, as long as they have a personal identity number (personnummer). Swedish nationals can also apply to the police for a national ID card. The document is not compulsory.

The government inquiry has concluded that the high number of ID cards available makes it harder for authorities to check the validity and authenticity of documents. It has advised that the responsibility for issuing the documents should be transferred entirely to the police, in order to make it easier for police to prevent and tackle fraud.

Inside this Issue 1 AI-Based Biometrics to Transform Travel

1 Uganda’s ePassport

Project to Cost $16 Million

2 Sweden to Reform

National ID Legislation

2 UK's NatWest Launches Biometric Card Pilot

3 News in Brief 4 Thales Completes

Acquisition of Gemalto

If the inquiry’s proposals are accepted, the new ID card will be introduced in 2022. The card will include a photo of the owner's face as well as a fingerprint and will also be linked to a national digital identification system. The inquiry also called for a short validity period, noting that a person's appearance can change significantly over five years.

Sweden’s current police-issued national ID card.

UK’s NatWest Launches Biometric Card Pilot One of the UK's major commercial banks, NatWest, is set to pilot cuttingedge biometric fingerprint technology with 200 customers as part of a national trial with payment cards designed to increase security for contactless payments above £30. The three-month pilot of the biometric cards – which were developed by the bank in partnership with Gemalto, Visa and Mastercard – is being launched this month.

4 Onfido Raises $50 Million 5 IDEMIA to Restructure 5 Veridos to Launch Border5 Tanzania’s eVisa and eResidence Permits

Develops Embossable Films and New OVDs

7 Nanotech's Dynamic

Portrait and LiveLogo

8 HSP Latin America

Programme Published

2 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | MARKET NEWS

feature is active, if the customer places their finger on the card corner where their biometric information is stored, contactless payments above £30 will be authorised without the need to enter their PIN. No official timeframe has been set as to when the bank might be able to provide its 16 million customers with the biometricsequipped cards. The payments industry is considered to be a long way off fully incorporating such cards, but the bank hopes to get more insight into the usefulness and uptake of the feature from the trial.

‘We are using the very latest technology across our business to make banking easier for our customers, and biometric fingerprint cards are one of the many technologies we are exploring further,’ said NatWest’s Head of Effortless Payments, David Crawford.

Control Project

6 Technology News 7 Demax Holograms

The proposals put forward by the inquiry will now be referred for consultation.

NatWest biometric fingerprint card.

According to the bank, a range of different customer profiles were chosen for the trial, rather than age-specific, tech-savvy individuals.

On receiving the new cards, customers will be able to store and activate fingerprintbased verification themselves. Once the

NatWest’s pilot is the latest example of how organisations are seeking to find a balance between strong security and a good user experience. Many organisations are now considering how to implement biometric technology to improve security for users. While biometrics can provide a useful additional barrier to keep criminals at bay when used in conjunction with other security measures, biometrics alone is not considered to be sufficient.

News in Brief Pakistan to Introduce ePassports Pakistan’s Directorate General, Immigration and Passports has announced it will introduce an innovative ePassport system within the next two months to ensure greater security and provide better facilities to applicants.

The new ePassport will incorporate advanced security features and an embedded electronic microprocessor with the biometric data of the passport holder.

According to the Directorate General, having a chip in the new system will help improve security. Both the new and old systems will be run simultaneously for the time being.

The Directorate has proposed an allocation of around $1.7 million for the year 201920 to establish regional passport offices in Mandi Bahauddin, Sukkur, Muzaffarabad, Sialkot, Abbottabad and Bannu. Developed at a cost of $3.7 million, the agency has described the ePassport system as clean, secure and fully automated.

Initially, ePassports will be issued from Dhaka. The regional offices will continue to issue traditional passports until they can start issuing ePassports. The process to install eGates had already begun at every airport and land port across the country to facilitate the use of the ePassports.

Jamaica’s Court Strikes Down National ID System

Bangladesh’s new ePassport.

Taiwan Launching eID Cards from 2020 Taiwan’s National Development Council (NDC) has announced that the new national eID card will be released in October 2020.

According to NDC, it will be the key for all kinds of information.

Bangladesh has pushed back the official launch of ePassports to June, six months later than originally planned.

The card will display the individual’s name and photo, while their spouse, parents and place of birth will not be printed on the document. The agency said that Taiwan’s flag may also not appear on the card and the government is leaning toward concealing a person's gender.

The ePassport will have an embedded electronic microprocessor chip which contains biometric information used to authenticate the identity of the bearer.

According to the Department of Immigration and Passports, the new travel document will incorporate 38 types of security features.

Spouse, parents, place of birth and gender will be saved instead in the card’s chip, with three groups – male, female, and transgender – represented by different numbers, with transgender people not having to choose a gender they did not agree with for their ID cards.

Bangladesh and Germany signed an agreement in July last year following Dhaka’s decision to migrate to electronic passports. Implementation of the project – the ePassport and Automated Border Control Management System – started in July 2018 and is expected to continue until June 2028.

The card will incorporate the holder's driver's licence and National Health Insurance details, but these elements will be phased in gradually. Taiwan’s Ministry of the Interior has said the decision on whether to include the Taiwan flag on the new eID is still under discussion.

Bangladesh Delays ePassport Launch

The ePassport launch was scheduled to start in December last year but was then pushed back to March 2019 as the authorities were unable to begin the work within the stipulated time. The Department of Immigration and Passports said that arranging the funds for the project had delayed the work. Various other complications also arose during the work.

The government initially planned to produce the first two million ePassports in Germany.

Later, it decided to print the first batch in Bangladesh.

Taiwan’s Ministry of Interior proposed new eID card design.

The government has been mulling over the national eID card for a couple of years, aiming to replace the current ID card with a multi-functional and anti-forgery version.

The eID is to combine the functionality of the national ID card and the Citizen Digital Certificate, which is used to file taxes online. The Ministry of the Interior will be responsible for designing the card.

The initiative is expected to improve decision-making and will create a next generation governance model by initiating collaboration between the public and private sectors, providing people with more convenient services. The initiative is also seen as an important policy to help the country become synchronised with digital governments around the world.

The Constitutional Court of Jamaica has struck down the country’s mandatory biometric National Identification and Registration Act and the National Identification and Registration System (NIDS), ruling three to none that it violates constitutional privacy protections.

The law required all Jamaicans to register biometric data and obtain an NIDS identity card, which would be needed to access government services, and which would also be used for other business practices. What biometrics would be used, however, had not yet been determined.

A panel consisting of three judges ruled in favour of a legal challenge brought by Julian Robinson, General Secretary of the People’s National Party (PNP), on behalf of his constituents, and the party.

Robinson claimed that several constitutional violations were included in the act, arguing that merely because similar or identical information is already in the possession of the state, that in and of itself does not make taking of such information again legitimate.

In particular, the act hadn’t spelt out the full implications of collecting biographical information, combining it with biometrics and then automating the process with supporting algorithms. And, protections to ensure the proper storage and safety of data in state possession were inadequate to meet the constitutional standard. He also said that individual choice is deprived by making the NIDS mandatory.

The Private Sector Organization of Jamaica, the Jamaica Chamber of Commerce, and the Jamaica Manufacturers and Exporters Association published a joint statement in response to the Court’s 309-page ruling, pointing out that while they support the decision, a political consensus on the necessity of a new identification system remains.

The NIDS was passed into law in November 2017 with 168 amendments, amid controversy that it was being rushed through parliament, and was originally intended for implementation this year.

Jamaica’s government will now review the judgement before taking any further steps.

NEWS IN BRIEF | VOLUME 7 – NO 4 | APRIL 2019

3

Thales Completes Acquisition of Gemalto Thales has completed the acquisition of Gemalto for €4.8 billion, creating a group on a new scale and a global leader in digital identity and security employing 80,000 people. The larger Thales will master all the technologies underpinning the critical decision chain for companies, organisations and governments.

Incorporating Gemalto’s technologies, Thales says it will develop secure solutions to address the major challenges faced by societies, such as unmanned air traffic management, data and network cybersecurity, airport security and financial transaction security. It adds that this combination creates a world-class leader with an unrivalled portfolio of digital identity and security solutions based on technologies such as biometrics, data protection, and, more broadly, cybersecurity.

According to Thales, it will thus provide a seamless response to customers, including critical infrastructure providers such as banks, telecom operators, government agencies, utilities and other industries. Last year the company generated €19 billion in revenues.

Research and development (R&D) will be at the core of the new group, with its 3,000 researchers and 28,000 engineers dedicated to R&D. Today, says Thales, the group has become a giant laboratory inventing the world of tomorrow, with a portfolio of 20,500 patents, of which more than 400 new ones were registered in 2018.

The new Thales will cover the entire critical decision chain in what it calls an increasingly interconnected and vulnerable world, with capabilities spanning software development, data processing, real-time decision support, connectivity and end-toend network management.

With €1 billion a year devoted to self-funded R&D, the group will continue to innovate in its key markets, drawing in particular on its digital expertise in the Internet of Things, Big Data, artificial intelligence and cybersecurity.

Following this acquisition, Gemalto will form one of Thales’s seven global divisions, to be named Digital Identity and Security (DIS). Gemalto will interact with all of the group’s civil and defence customers and will significantly strengthen its industrial presence in 68 countries. Thales will considerably expand its operations in Latin America (2,500 employees, up from 600), triple its presence in Northern Asia (1,980, from 700), Southeast Asia (2,500, from 800), India (1,150, from 400) and North America (6,660 employees, up from 4,600).

Commenting on the acquisition, Thales’ Chairman and CEO Patrice Caine said: ‘with Gemalto, a global leader in digital identification and data protection, Thales has acquired a set of highly complementary technologies and competencies with applications in all of our five vertical markets, which are now redefined as aerospace; space; ground transportation; digital identity and security; and defence and security. The acquisition is a turning point for the group’s 80,000 employees.

Together, we are creating a giant in digital identity and security with the capabilities to compete in the big leagues worldwide.’

Onfido Raises $50 Million UK-based identity verification provider Onfido has announced that it has raised $50 million in funding led by Softbank Investment and Salesforce Ventures, with participation from M12 (formerly Microsoft Ventures), and FinVC, amongst others. This brings the total venture capital raised to over $100 million, following a $30 million Series C round in September 2017 and $25 million raised in April 2016, and will be used to accelerate Onfido's product development and expansion into Europe and Southeast Asia.

‘We’re seeing new data breaches occur every day, resulting in millions of people’s private data ending up on the dark web,’ said CEO and cofounder Husayn Kassai.

‘With this new funding, we can protect more businesses, in more countries – and in more ways – from the effects of fraud.’

‘Onfido is very well placed to solidify its position as the global leader in identity verification,’ added SBI Investment’s Tomoyuki Nii. ‘We chose to invest in Onfido because they have proven their expertise at using artificial intelligence to effectively fight fraud, giving businesses a safe and secure way to scale their businesses online.’

4 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | COMPANY NEWS

Onfido – which was founded in 2012 by three Oxford University graduates – has developed a software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform that taps artificial intelligence (AI) to perform background checks on wouldbe employees at each stage of the hiring and recruitment process. It initially targeted on-demand businesses and contract workers, but has gradually expanded in scope to financial services and ecommerce, particularly identity checks for businesses.

Onfido uses a selfie and a picture of a passport, driver’s licence, identity card, or other form of identification to perform a liveness check through onscreen instructions. This involves one of several actions such as blinking, saying a sequence of numbers, or smiling, and then, using optical character recognition, facial biometrics, criminal records, driving records, and other checks, to produce a risk report indicating its confidence in the person’s identity.

Onfido’s Document Check.

According to the company, its AI-driven platform can automate background checks in seconds across 192 countries, though it also leans on humans to verify outliers. Its solution complies with Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulations, helping it to achieve fraud exposure rates as small as 0.19%.

Onfido currently has over 250 employees across offices in San Francisco, New York, Lisbon, Delhi, and Singapore in addition to its London headquarters.

IDEMIA to Restructure IDEMIA has announced that all existing group transactions business units – ie.

Financial Institutions, Mobile Operators and Connected Objects – will be brought together under one division – Secure Enterprise Transactions (SET). In addition, the group is also considering the creation of a new Digital business unit within the SET division. The new division will be led by Pierre Barrial, who previously managed IDEMIA’s Financial Institutions business unit.

IDEMIA says it will continue to develop its long-time expertise in cutting-edge technologies such as cryptography, artificial intelligence, biometrics and cloud communications, with the new SET division delivering connectivity, payment and identity solutions.

The SET division will support customers as they go digital while continuing to provide value-enhancing and trail-blazing services for their traditional operations, says IDEMIA. The Connected Objects business unit will henceforth take over IDEMIA’s biometric device activities.

Separately, IDEMIA has announced that it is partnering with the Kudelski Group to provide manufacturers and service providers with a single, fully-integrated solution to manage the network connectivity and security of cellular IoT devices.

The new partnership integrates IDEMIA’s DAKOTA IoT and TSM (Trusted Service Management) solutions with the Kudelski IoT Security Platform. DAKOTA IoT is a secure hardware and operating system that allows

device makers to remotely download mobile operator subscriptions to the connected objects deployed in the field and authorise them to use the network.

The Kudelski IoT Security Platform provides device security (firmware lifecycle management), data security (transportand application-level authentication and encryption), access management (tokenbased feature activation) and active security (monitoring and AI-based anomaly detection) to device manufacturers. The integration of the two solutions in a single device makes IoT security more widely accessible and decreases the time to market for new IoT solutions.

The integrated platform is fully compliant with GSMA (Global System for Mobile Communications) standards and uses Global Platform Alliance recommendations to ensure that security can be updated over the air using standard GSMA mechanisms across all worldwide networks.

‘Our alliance with the Kudelski Group gives the IoT market a clear signal. We are thrilled to apply our expertise to help bolster IoT security backed by state-of-the-art technology providing for enhanced user trust in everyday devices,’ said IDEMIA Executive Vice President for Connected Objects activity, Yves Portalier.

‘By combining our battle-tested security technologies with IDEMIA’s connectivity solution, we enable companies to deliver secure, connected products to market more quickly,' added Jean-Michel Puiatti, Kudelski Group Senior Vice President for IoT Security.

Veridos to Launch EU-Funded Project on Border Control Veridos will head a new EU-funded research project, which focuses on enhancing the quality and efficiency of verification at border crossings. The project is aimed at reducing the process duration to enable a non-stop bordercrossing experience for travellers and to significantly decrease fraud. Veridos will act as a consortium leader and will work together with 18 partners.

Called D4FLY, the project focuses on the authentication of travellers on the move and document verification with the primary goal of making border control faster and more secure. Research topics will include 3D face recognition, the use of smartphones as a means of identification, document forgery detection, and anti-spoofing.

The potential benefit of blockchain technology in identity verification will also be investigated.

The project is funded by the EU Horizon 2020 programe ‘Secure societies – protecting freedom and security of Europe and its citizens.'

Tanzania’s eVisa and eResidence Permits HID Global has announced that the government of Tanzania has selected its citizen ID solutions to add eVisa and ePermit capabilities to its ePassport, which the company deployed last year as part of the Tanzania eImmigration programme.

The new web-based visa and residence permit services will allow visitors and residents to apply for and receive validated credentials for travelling and living in the country.

‘This is an important milestone as we continue to work with HID Global to enhance and broaden the capabilities of our eImmigration ecosystem,’ said Dr Anna Peter Makakala, Tanzania’s Commissioner General of Immigration.

‘We plan to continue expanding this solution to our country’s border crossings and across the broader global community as we become a showcase for efficient, comprehensive and integrated eImmigration solutions.’

Since early 2018, HID Global has been Tanzania’s primary supplier of an end-to-end solution for issuing ePassports with advanced physical and electronic security features, automated verification capabilities and a tamper-proof contactless chip embedded in a polycarbonate datapage.

The country now has a single citizen identification system that spans the entire identity journey from data capture to issuance, and can be used to support ePassports, eVisas, ePermits and other physical electronic documents.

Four different border control points and one document fraud expertise centre will form the project’s testing and demonstration ground, including locations in Greece, Lithuania, and the Netherlands.

D4FLY is the fourth EU research project for Veridos in recent years. The projects have included the PROTECT project on biometric border technology, which the European Commission has described as an EU research success story.

Tanzania’s ePassport introduced in January 2018.

VOLUME 7 – NO 4 | APRIL 2019

5

Technology News IQ Structures Launch DOVIDs for Transparent Windows in Polycarbonate IDs IQ Structures has announced the launch of high-resolution holograms for transparent windows in polycarbonate ID cards.

Transparent windows have been used since the polycarbonate cards were first introduced in the 1990s. IQ Structures say by integrating full-fledged holograms into ID cards, security becomes simple and intuitive for document examiners and border officers.

‘If you look against a dark background, you can see through the card and – at the same time – a distinctive hologram with sharp colours and sophisticated visual effects,’ said Robert Dvorak, IQ Structures’ Business Development Director.

The solution is based on IQ Structures’ proID product. The holograms consist of tiny parts, and melted polycarbonate flows between them during the card lamination.

The hologram is thus integrated into the card seamlessly and any manipulation attempt results in its irreversible disintegration.

Transparent, metallic and combined holograms in any arrangement can be placed into transparent windows, creating an organic unit with background graphics and security graphics of the ID card.

Most hologram producers use an adhesive for adding holograms to polycarbonate.

With time the adhesive changes the hologram’s optical properties, so the hologram is impacted visually. proID doesn't use any heterogeneous substance, guaranteeing full brilliance of the hologram for the whole lifespan of the card.

IQ Structures has also partnered with Jura to launch a solution that accelerates the preparation of ID projects, simplifies approval processes and supports smooth cooperation between graphical designers and security experts.

ID cards are often designed in cooperation between many organisations and units.

Finding the right compromise between different views is always critical. According to the companies, the solution will allow ministries, authorities, integrators and other clients to create a complete design of polycarbonate ID cards on their own, instead of via a complicated process across different organisations.

With the new solution, ID card designing is transformed into quite an easy process.

The designer puts in place visual elements, such as national symbols, at the same time as different security elements. The designer can also decide what spaces are to be protected against counterfeiting and tampering with transparent and metallic holograms.

6 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | TECHNOLOGY NEWS

The companies have produced a sample ID card with an Olympus deity to demonstrate the benefits of this combination of technologies. An extensive, transparent hologram with traditional Greek ornaments reaches up to the edge of the card. This hologram protects the holder’s picture and personal details the while holder’s signature is protected with a standalone metallic hologram. A picture of Pallas Athena with three metallic holograms demonstrates the precise coordination between security printing and holograms. According to IQ Structures, higher aesthetic value and more robust protection against tampering bring the standard of ID documents to a new level.

In addition, Regula has also launched Mobile Document Authenticator Regula 1120 – a brand-new authentication device, which can be easily connected to a mobile phone via Bluetooth LE. Using UV365 LEDs for visualising UV luminescence, Regula says this unique solution helps to reach another level of document authentication on a smartphone.

The Regula Document Reader SDK mobile app.

IDEX Biometrics Launch DualInterface Biometric Cards Sample ID card showing IQ Structures’ latest solutions for polycarbonate IDs.

Regula Releases New Document Reader SDK for Mobile Platforms Regula has released a new version of its Document Reader SDK for iOS and Android platforms. The newly updated version 2.2 brings significant improvements to the speed and accuracy of the OCR process for text in Latin Cyrillic (including three main variations of the Cyrillic alphabet used in the Balkans), Hebrew and Vietnamese. The new key feature is the opportunity to switch to the front-facing camera of the smartphone.

The Document Reader SDK comprises 7,100+ document templates which help to validate different types of identity documents such as passports, ID cards, visas and driving licences. The software combines a unique set of features, reading all standard and non-standard Machine-Readable Zone (MRZ) formats, RFID chips, and 1D and 2D barcodes.

The document verification solution provides secure and reliable automatic data processing, as well as delivers a fully offline operation. The solution is already used by law enforcement agencies, flight booking and online check-in systems as well as fintech, banking and various organisations dealing with identity documents, including the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

The company says it is extremely cautious of security and privacy so all personal data which is being processed remains on the device.

IDEX, the Norwegian provider of advanced fingerprint identification solutions, and Shenzhen’s Excelsecu Data Technology have launched battery-less dual-interface biometric cards with display.

Excelsecu is a leading Chinese supplier and solution provider of data security. The company’s product portfolio includes a wide range of security products including display cards, authentication tokens and smart cards. Excelsecu’s customers span the financial services industry plus government and enterprise. Several of China’s largest banks are customers, including the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the Agricultural Bank of China, and the Bank of Communications.

According to the companies, demand for higher levels of security, coupled with a positive user experience, are essential for success in today’s digital world, and dualinterface biometric cards are an innovation that addresses these demands.

IDEX Biometrics has also partnered with Zhuhai’s Goldpac to introduce dual-interface biometric cards in China and beyond.

Goldpac Group is one of the five largest card integrators globally, and the only secure payment solution provider from China to hold simultaneous certifications from China UnionPay, Visa, MasterCard, American Express, JCB and Diners.

IDEX Biometrics says that the market for biometric cards will ramp up significantly in 2019. During the second half of 2018 a vast range of card integrators began gearing up their efforts to commercialise biometric cards, as the cards increasingly become the preferred means of authentication and a more secure and convenient means of identification and payment.

Demax Holograms Develops Embossable Films and New OVDs for ID Bulgarian company Demax Holograms has developed its own embossable base films for the production of OVDs, as well as a new series of OVDs for the ID market.

The move into producing embossable base films now means Demax can produce the vast majority of its products in-house, rather than relying on outside base foil suppliers. According to Demax, this will help with costs, security and lead times. The development of its own base films is no easy task, says the company, and represents considerable investment in research and development which it continues to undertake.

In 2014, the company invested in a stateof-the-art JEOL electron beam origination system, which has enabled it to produce sub-micron structures with specific profiles that can produce unique optical effects such as 3D and motion type features, colour sensitivity and complex multi-level effects. These features are now being requested by established customers, particularly for banknote and ID document authentication features.

Using calculated diffraction gratings with wavelengths less than the visible wavelength of light, Demax’s R&D team is able to produce non-saturated colours with noniridescent tones such as white and pastel blues, pinks and yellows. The colours remain stable regardless of the viewing angle.

And by combining traditional diffractive effects with pastel colours, unique optical features can be generated that exhibit rainbow-like colour variations in the background, for example, while demonstrating stable pastel colours in the main part of the image.

Building on the e-beam and materials science investments, the company has developed OVD products for the ID sector that can be used for both passport datapages and ID cards of various substrates. These latest products can be supplied as laminates or patches depending on the customer’s requirement and can be tailored with a whole host of security features, for example nanotext, hidden images, flip/flop and zero order effects, motion and achromatic effects, colour switching effects and a variety of colours.

An example of Demax’s OVD laminate on a polycarbonate ID card.

Whilst OVDs continue to be one of the most successful overt security features to date, there is still the increasing requirement to provide unique intuitive visual effects which are easy to understand and quick to authenticate. Using the new e-beam capability, Demax says it has been able to meet these requirements by developing novel effects based on diffraction optics.

Demax is now concentrating its efforts on further commercialising its developments, with the goal of producing well-balanced first line inspection security elements available for integration into passports, identity cards and other security documents.

Nanotech Launches Dynamic Portrait and LiveLogo Canada-based Nanotech Security Corp – an innovator in the research, creation and production of nano-optic structures and colour-shifting materials used in secure documents and brand protection – has announced the release of its first commercial products – Dynamic Portrait™ and LiveLogo™. Whilst both products are specifically targeting the commercial brand market, the company says these have potential across various markets including passports, ID cards and other secure documents.

Dynamic Portrait brings together highfidelity images with striking visual elements to display images far beyond conventional print resolution, and allows for text and other design elements to be added for additional authentication. The product is suited for showcasing a photo-realistic and high-fidelity image.

LiveLogo employs Nanotech’s image switch technology to generate a unique and compelling three image feature. It creates an immediate visual impact, capturing and holding attention as the feature is tilted to show multiple image transitions. The image designs are customisable and can include a variety of items depending on customer requirements.

LiveLogo and Dynamic Portrait are based on Nanotech’s KolourOptik® nanographic display technology which, says the company, redefines the conventional print image with unprecedented motion, 3D depth, and ultra-high-resolution colour.

Nanotech’s Dynamic Portrait.

According to Nanotech, it offers a true digital solution providing uncompromising security while enabling customers to tell compelling stories characterised by true motion, true depth and true colour.

KolourOptik’s striking images make an immediate impact at wide viewing angles, considerable distances, and under diverse lighting conditions. Nanotech’s patented origination process and nano-scale technology make KolourOptik images impossible to replicate, it adds.

To support the launch of LiveLogo and Dynamic Portrait, Nanotech has completed extensive efforts in its North American supply chain development and vendor qualification. These efforts ensure that LiveLogo and Dynamic Portrait can be produced and delivered to customers in six to eight weeks and in commercial volumes ranging from thousands to millions.

Nanotech’s President and CEO Troy Bullock said: ‘we are very pleased to launch our first products designed specifically for the commercial market. Alongside our aggressive supply chain development, they represent important milestones in the execution of our commercialisation and future growth strategy, as well as our goal to deliver innovative products built upon our exceptional technology.’

TECHNOLOGY NEWS | VOLUME 7 – NO 4 | APRIL 2019

7

HSP Latin America Programme Published Organisers of the High Security Printing™ Conferences (HSP), Reconnaissance International, have announced the programme for the upcoming HSP Latin America event taking place in San Jose, Costa Rica on 3-5 June.

The conference programme will be split into two parallel tracks – one focusing on currency and the other on travel and identity documents.

A total of 48 presentations will be delivered over the two days, with six dedicated sessions covering travel and identity documents in the region, recent developments, document design, security and personalisation, electronic documents and government services, as well as document fraud, authentication technology and innovation.

The event will open with pre-conference seminars on 25 March, one of which will be dedicated to identity documents. ‘The Digital Revolution in Fraud’, presented

by Michael van Gestel and Dimi Radu of Onfido, will focus on the challenges global organisations deal with when trying to stop targeted attacks in a document-notpresent environment.

The following day, conference sessions will include presentations from Guatemala’s Registro Nacional de Las Personas on Guatemala’s new national eID card, Bolivia’s Direccion Nacional de Migracion on Bolivia’s recently launched new ePassport and Colombia’s Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores on the country’s upgraded ePassport launched last year.

A dedicated session on design and security will explore developments in security features, including advances in optical features, colour personalisation for polycarbonate and the future design for passports and ID cards.

The final day will see presentations from Argentina’s National Department for Immigration on document checking, US Department of Homeland Security on fraud trends at the US southwest border and NXP on the evolution of Ecuador’s national eID card, amongst others.

A specialised exhibition of over 40 companies will be held alongside the conference sessions. As usual, the event will play host to the prestigious Regional Banknote and Regional ID Document of the Year awards. www.hsp-latinamerica.com

Events

13–15 MAY 2019 Publisher: Reconnaissance International Ltd Editor: Micaal Sidorov (right) Contributors: Mark Deakes Advisors: Alex van Duuren, Alan Hodgson, John Mercer Monica Peralta, Tony Poole Annual subscription rate: £645 plus postage Subscribers to Authentication News, Holography News or Tax Stamp News (20% discount). Government agencies: free of charge Ask about multiple/corporate subscriptions.

The editorial team welcomes your news, contributions and comments.

Please send these to publications@reconnaissance-intl.com 10 Windmill Business Village, Brooklands Close, Sunbury, TW16 7DY, UK Tel: +44 (0)1932 785 680; Fax: +44 (0)1932 780 790 www.securedocumentnews.com

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While every effort has been made to check the information given in this publication, the publishers cannot accept any responsibility for any loss or damage arising out of, or caused by the use of, such information. Opinions expressed in ID & Secure Document News are those of the individual authors and not necessarily those of the publisher.

COPYRIGHT 2019. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

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8 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | CONFERENCES

DIGITAL DOCUMENT SECURITY Berlin, Germany www.digitaldocumentsecurity.com

29–30 MAY 2019

SECURE IDENTIFICATION Riga, Latvia www.secureidentification.lv

3–5 JUNE 2019

HIGH SECURITY PRINTING LATIN AMERICA San Jose, Costa Rica www.hsp-latinamerica.com

11–13 JUNE 2019

SECURITY DOCUMENT WORLD London, UK www.terrapinn.com/exhibition/ identity-week/SDW-2019.stm

18–20 JUNE 2019 ID4AFICA Johannensburg, South Africa www.id4africa.com

25–28 JUNE 2019

ICAO TRIP SYMPOSIUM & EXHIBITION Montreal, Canada www.icao.int/Meetings/TRIP-Symposium-2019/Pages/default.aspx Our printer Colyer Group is ISO:14001 certified for environmental standards, and also FSC® Forestry certified – ensuring all our media comes from responsible sources.

VOLUME 7 – NO 5 -6 / MAY-JUNE 2019

Heathrow to Launch Passport-Free Travel System

Automated boarding gates at Heathrow’s Terminal 5.

London’s Heathrow Airport has announced that from this summer passengers won't have to show a passport or boarding card at check-in, as part of a £50 million project that will involve automating passenger processing using facial recognition technology.

The project will involve travellers going to automated kiosks to scan their passport and have their photo taken. The photo will then match the person’s face to the document and their travel details. The project is part of a wider programme of investment to streamline passenger journeys and, once complete, will mean that Heathrow will have the world’s largest deployment of biometric products.

With around 80 million passengers travelling through Heathrow a year, the technology aims to reduce the time passengers spend going through.

According to Heathrow officials, the facial recognition system will be more reliable than manual checks.

Currently, manual authentication means that passengers need to present different forms of ID such as boarding cards, booking reference numbers as well as their passports to different agents to show that

www.securedocumentnews.com

they are authorised to travel. By offering passengers the option to use more instant facial recognition technology, they will have the choice to streamline that process and collectively and significantly reduce the amount of paper used when flying.

While the airport already uses facial recognition for travellers entering the country via the eGates, this will be the first time a UK airport has used biometrics as a replacement for physical documents for check-in and boarding. This has the potential to allow for greater personalisation of passenger services, which is useful for passengers requiring additional assistance.

Commenting on the development Jonathan Coen, Heathrow Customer Relations and Service Director, said: ‘as our passenger numbers continue to grow, we must look for innovative ways to make it easier and quicker for them to travel through Heathrow with choice, whilst keeping our airport secure. Biometrics are key to helping us do that and we are really excited about the biggest roll out of this equipment at any UK airport. With this technology we’ll be able to offer passengers choice on how they travel through our airport, with colleagues on hand to guide passengers that require it.’

Greece Issues ID Tender The Hellenic Police (ELAS) has issued a tender for the creation of an electronic information system for security documents, which will be used to issue new ID cards and to upgrade current passports, driving licences and other documents. This system is intended to implement an EU decision first taken in November 2018.

The winning company that will manufacture the new security documents and IDs must already have produced similar documents in another two EU member states and adhere to the current security standards of both the EU and ICAO. The EU’s decision to overhaul the security standards of ID documents is due to become an EU directive, following which all EU member states will have 24 months to issue their citizens’ documents in line with the new standards.

The new IDs will have shared security features, such as a machine-readable zone for use in airports, ports, and railway station scanners, and a contactless chip containing biometric data such as photo and fingerprints.

In addition to Greek ID cards and passports, the system will also be used to issue diplomatic passports, UN travel documents for refugees and stateless persons, driving licences, various types of residence permits and police IDs. Greece is one of the last countries in Europe that still issues paperbased non-ICAO compliant national ID documents without a machinereadable zone.

Inside this Issue 1 Heathrow to Launch

Passport-Free System

1 Greece Issues ID Tender 2 UK ID Scheme Falls Short of Target

2 Verimi Partners with Signicat

3 Kyrgyzstan Passport Deal Under Investigation

3 Mastercard’s ConsumerCentric Model

4 IdenTrust and Device

Authority Partnership

4 HID Global to

Acquire De La Rue ID Solutions Business

5 News in Brief 6 Secure Identity and Systems

8 Tonga to Develop Digital ID System

8 Philippines to Start

Issuing National eIDs

9 Ipsidy Launches Proof 9 ID3 Technologies Unveils BioSeal

9 Feitian Launches

Fingerprint Power Card

10 Canada Launches

Blockchain-Based Digital ID Network

10 Seoul Set to Introduce Blockchain-Based ID

10 SailPoint Launches

'Predictive Identity'

11 A Quantum Leap from IQDEMY for Security

12 Wirecard Partners with Indian Government

13 PPG Introduces Teslin EMI/RF Shielding

13 IQ Structures Wins Award 13 SPS Introduces C-Lam® 14 UK Puts Passport Office Contract Out to Tender

14 Bolivia and Colombia Celebrate ID Awards

15 The Challenge of Digital Secured Documents

16 Highest HSP Latin

America Attendance

2 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | MARKET NEWS

UK ID Scheme Falls Short of Target UK’s National Audit Office (NAO) has published a report criticising the government's flagship Gov.UK Verify identity verification scheme. According to the NAO, the scheme has fallen well short of its target of 25 million users by 2020, managing only 3.6 million so far.

As a result, the government has had to lower its estimates for Verify's financial benefits by 75%.

The Verify platform was launched by the Government Digital Service (GDS) in 2016 and was intended to become the default way for people to prove their identity for online government services, with a one–time only identity verification process using a certified company or a UK-issued document. From checking income tax to receiving benefit payments, GDS's aim was for Verify to be a shared identity portal across government departments – with 46 expected to be connected to the platform

by March 2018.

Currently, however, only 19 government services use Verify and 11 of those can still be accessed through other online systems.

And, only 48% of people who try to sign up for the service are successful on their first try. The rate is even lower – 38% – for universal credit claimants, a social security payment scheme that uses the service to authenticate their identity online.

An NAO report says this has led to increased operational costs, with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) expecting its

spending on manual verification to be about £40 million over the next decade.

According to the UK government, however, ‘challenges like these are to be expected when the government is working at the forefront of new technology. Verify is saving taxpayers money and is a world-leading project in its field.’

The report notes that the total cost of Verify exceeds £154 million, and the figure does not include the amount it has cost departments to reconfigure their systems to use Verify. Of the known costs, more than one-third has gone on payments to the commercial identity providers behind the system. In addition, six government departments have yet to pay for the services – totalling £2 million in unpaid invoices between them.

The setbacks mean the estimate for Verify's financial benefits has been slashed by the government from £873 million – as GDS predicted in a 2016 business case – down to £217 million.

‘Even in the context of GDS's redefined objectives for the programme, it is difficult to conclude that successive decisions to continue with Verify have been sufficiently justified,’ concludes the report.

The government is due to stop funding Verify from April 2020, when it hands the operation of the system over to the private sector. It is not yet clear what it will cost for government departments to continue using Verify from next year.

Verimi Partners with Signicat Germany’s identification platform Verimi and digital identity solutions provider Signicat have announced a partnership to deliver a multi-factor identification and authentication solution across Europe.

The agreement includes the integration of Verimi’s identification platform into Signicat’s Digital Identity Hub.

identity verification services, and regulatory compliance offerings can be provided in an interoperable manner across Europe.

This hub allows customers to connect once, then digitally onboard and authenticate their clients in a verified, compliant manner. The partnership means that Signicat customers can add Germany to the list of markets where they can digitally onboard customers.

The company was founded in 2017.

The platform is supported by a network of 13 international corporations with shareholder networks, including Allianz, Bundesdruckerei, Core, Daimler, Deutsche Bahn, Deutsche Bank and Postbank, Deutsche Telekom, Giesecke+Devrient, Lufthansa, Samsung and Volkswagen.

The agreement enables Verimi to attract more international partners via their network and means that Verimi will be an ID provider for Signicat’s services in Germany. Signicat will integrate Verimi services into its Digital Identity Hub so that new and existing clients can use Verimi’s identification and authentication methods.

Overall, the partnership ensures that secure and effective digital onboarding,

Verimi is the European cross-industry identity and trusted platform. The platform combines a central login (Single Sign On), high data security and protection standards in line with European law.

Commenting on the agreement, Verimi’s spokesman for the Management Board, Roland Adrian, said: ‘Verimi starts to gain a foothold in the European market for digital identities and Signicat is the ideal partner for Verimi to attract even more new clients in Europe. We are happy to enter into a partnership with Signicat and become the ID provider of choice in Germany.’

Kyrgyzstan Passport Deal Under Investigation

Sample passport pages of the new Kyrgyzstan ePassport.

Kyrgyzstan's $13.4 million passport deal is at the centre of a major corruption probe, with the country's state security agency GKNB accusing both current and former government officials of accepting bribes from the Vilnius-based passport printer Garsu Pasaulis, who won the contract in February this year.

According to reports, although Garsu Pasaulis provided all the required documentation, its total number of delivered passport booklets over the five-year period was under 2 million. To rise above the minimum requirement, the company included documents showing deliveries that took place over an additional eight month period.

According to Kyrgyz media, three officials from the State Registry Service (SRS), the agency that issues passports and put out the tender earlier this year, have been detained. One of them is also, reportedly, the head of the tender commission that decided on the bid.

The Bishkek Inter-District Court has now overturned the tender award and Mühlbauer says it has initiated legal proceedings against the SRS for illegitimately excluding it from the tender.

The SRS said it will decide on its future course of action in the coming weeks.

Several media outlets claim the commission overlooked Garsu Pasaulis’s failure to meet certain requirements – while disqualifying its main competitor on similar grounds – and failed to evaluate the company’s bid adequately.

Seven of the 11 members of the tender commission were reportedly from the State Registry Service and four of these were found to have violated procedures in their day jobs in 2017.

The introduction of biometric passports in Kyrgyzstan is seen as one of the basic conditions for the creation of eGovernment and the country's entry into the digital future through the implementation of the Taza Koom project, initiated by the country’s former President Almazbek Atambayev.

Five companies submitted their bids when the tender was announced in October 2018 – Mühlbauer, Veridos, Garsu Pasaulis, IDEMIA and the Banknote Factory of the National Bank of Kazakhstan. Three were rejected by the tender commission for failing to meet bid requirements. Of the remaining two – Garsu Pasaulis and IDEMIA – the Lithuanian company won as it had submitted a lower bid.

Garsu Pasaulis’s bid for the project came in at $13.4 million. Two other competitors had submitted considerably lower bids, but both were rejected: one for noncompliance with technical requirements and the other for failure to submit original documents and samples.

One key criterion was for bidders to have completed at least two projects and delivered at least 2 million booklets over the previous five years. To substantiate their claims, bidders were asked to provide copies of contracts, proofs of delivery containing exact figures, and reference letters.

Kyrgyzstan’s State Registration Service has announced plans to start issuing biometric passports from the second half of 2018. The equipment for the manufacture of passports has already been acquired with the support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Japanese government.

The new equipment provides a wide range of built-in personalisation technologies, such as inkjet printing, support for printing multiple laser images (MLI), software and data protection, as well as a second-generation laser engraving module that allows textual data and high-quality images to be written at a speed of up to 300 passports per hour, optimising the manufacturing process.

Mastercard’s ConsumerCentric Model for Digital Identity Mastercard has published a new paper titled ‘Restoring Trust in a Digital World’, presenting its vision for digital identity in today’s increasingly connected world.

The paper details a framework of how digital identity will work, starting with the individual sitting at the heart of every digital interaction.

Guiding this model are Mastercard’s Principles of Digital Identity that underpin the system. These principles focus on data rights and ownership, confidentiality, consent, transparency, security and inclusion.

They amount to a fundamental individual right: ‘I own my identity and I control my identity data.’

‘The big question for digital interactions in a hyper-connected age is: how do you trust someone you don’t know, can’t see and isn’t present in person?’ said Ajay Bhalla, President of Cyber & Intelligence Solutions for Mastercard. ‘This is an area we’ve been exploring for some time, in discussion with a range of different groups. It’s with this insight that we imagine a world where a person’s identity and the devices operating on their behalf can be verified immediately, safely and securely, where access is gained without passwords and data is exchanged only with consent.’

Mastercard says its model embodies privacyby-design and does not aggregate identity data. It will enable digital interactions to occur with minimal data exchanged and only when needed, and will safeguard data and the use of data effectively such that the users are in control, with a person’s identity securely bound to their smartphone.

Access to a digital identity will unlock new and enhanced experiences for people as they interact with businesses, service providers and their communities online, introducing a more efficient online shopping experience, a more seamless process for opening a bank account or filing taxes, and streamlining use of e-mail, social media and entertainment platforms. It will also reduce the risk of fraud and identity theft.

Ajay Bhalla said: ‘digital identity requires a collective effort. Building on our strategic partnership with Microsoft and working with a range of industry players, we are committed to facilitating the network and helping define the rules and governance. Together, we have a real opportunity to transform digital engagement so that it is convenient and doesn’t compromise on security.’

VOLUME 7 – NO 5-6 | MAY-JUNE 2019

3

IdenTrust and Device Authority Announce Partnership IdenTrust, part of HID Global, a leading trusted provider of digital certificates, and Device Authority, a supplier of Identity and Access Management (IAM) solutions for the internet of things (IoT), have announced a strategic alliance with a vision to provide trusted identity lifecycle management for enterprises on their digital transformation journey.

Device certificates have traditionally been used to secure routers, firewalls, servers, and other devices capable of securely handling private keys and implementing PKI technologies. However, in the new IoT world, device certificates can be used to secure a wide range of networked assets, such as ATM machines, medical devices, surveillance cameras, industrial machines, refrigerators, vehicles and much more.

IdenTrust’s comprehensive identitybased digital certificate solutions deliver assured individual and device identity for financial institutions, healthcare providers, government agencies and enterprises.

With over 5 million certificates in active production, IdenTrust supports over 18 billion validations per year and is the world’s leading digital certification authority.

Device Authority’s KeyScaler automation engine provides secure IoT device registration and provisioning through an innovative policy-driven credential delivery and management system that ensures certificates can be easily rotated, renewed and managed without human intervention.

The platform is designed for swift integration and interoperability in support of today’s rapidly expanding IoT application market.

According to the companies, combining Device Authority’s KeyScaler platform capabilities with IdenTrust’s trusted digital certificate solutions provides customers with a complete IoT security solution that automates compliance, minimises costly manual intervention and manages risks in a diverse industrial regulatory marketplace.

‘The relationship between IdenTrust and Device Authority links our trusted certificate authority with a seamless and scalable means to efficiently manage the lifecycle of issued digital certificates in the rapidly expanding IoT device market,’ said Brad Jarvis, Vice President and Managing Director of Identity & Access Management Solutions (IAMS) with HID Global. ‘The combination simplifies the process of enhancing device security and its administration for our customers.’

4 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | COMPANY NEWS

HID Global to Acquire De La Rue ID Solutions De La Rue has announced that it has agreed the sale of its International Identity Solutions business to HID Global for a cash consideration of £42 million on a cash-free debt-free basis, payable upon completion.

The acquisition is subject to regulatory approval and customary closing conditions, and is expected to close by Q3 2019. The business will become a part of HID’s Citizen Identity Solutions business area, which is led by Jessica Westerouen van Meeteren, Vice President and Managing Director.

More restructuring for De La Rue

Kenya’s ePassport Devleoped and Supplied by De La Rue Featuring Polycarbonate Data Page.

News of the acquisition came shortly after the publication of De La Rue’s annual results for 2018/19 and the announcement of a further transformation of the company in light of what the Board termed ‘strong headwinds’ in its core currency business.

Through this business, De La Rue delivers identity documents and software solutions for governments around the world. It issues secure identity documents for more than 25 countries, with significant market presence, particularly in Africa and the Middle East.

Group sales were up 12% to £516.6 million, excluding paper (the papermaking subsidiary Portals was sold at the end of the last financial year), and grew by 14% on a reported basis to £564.8 million.

Revenues benefited from the impact of the adoption of IFRS 15 accounting rules.

Under the terms of the agreement, HID Global will acquire De La Rue’s international identity solutions contracts, associated software, passport assembly facilities in Malta, and certain printing contracts of security documents such as visas and birth, death and marriage certificates. The agreement also includes De La Rue providing printing services to HID Global until March 2022. The UK passport contract is outside the scope of the agreement.

In the financial year to 30 March 2019, the business generated sales of £37.8 million and an operating profit of £2.3 million (post allocated corporate overhead).

The gross assets of the business were £88 million as at 30 March 2019, of which £38 million will be transferred with the business.

HID Global says the acquisition will broaden its leadership position in the government-to-citizen identification market and extend its capabilities.

‘With complementary products, solutions and services that are highly synergistic with HID Global’s current offerings, De La Rue’s identity solutions business is an excellent strategic fit with our mission to power the trusted identities of the world’s people, places and things,’ said Stefan Widing, President and CEO of HID Global. ‘Customers of both organisations will benefit from the expanded range of eGovernment solutions that will be offered as a result of the acquisition.’

Adjusted operating profit excluding paper increased by 6% to £60 million, but part of this increase was due to a £6.9 million uplift caused by the adoption of the IFRS 15 account rules. IFRS operating profit for 2019 was £31.5 million – substantially lower than the £123 million reported the previous year. Net debt increased to £107.5 million from £49.9 million the previous year.

In addition to the sale of the ID business, De La Rue announced an additional cost-cutting programme that will save £20 million per year, and a refocusing of the Group’s activities over the next 12 months into two divisions – Currency, encompassing the company’s banknote print and polymer product lines, and Authentication, encompassing security features, ID security components and product authentication.

Commenting on the transaction and the reorganisation , Martin Sutherland, CEO of De La Rue (who has since resigned and will step down once his successor is appointed) said: ‘after assessing all options, we believe that exiting the end-to-end identity solutions market is the right one for the Group and will deliver the most value to shareholders.

Focusing on identity-related security features and components is in line with our strategy to transform De La Rue to an asset light and more technology-led business. This transaction strengthens our balance sheet and allows us to focus on the other strategic growth areas of security features, polymer, and product authentication and traceability’.

News in Brief Gemalto Shares Delisted Thales and Gemalto have announced that, at their request, Euronext has delisted the ordinary shares in the capital of Gemalto from Euronext Amsterdam and Euronext Paris. The last day that Gemalto shares were traded on Euronext was 28 May 2019.

Thales says it will commence as soon as possible a compulsory acquisition procedure (uitkoopprocedure) in accordance with article 2:92a or 2:201a of the DCC Articles of Association to buy out the shareholders who have not tendered their shares, and acquire the remaining shares not held by Thales or Gemalto, in accordance with article 2:359c of the DCC Articles of Association.

IN Groupe Launches Expansion Plan IN Groupe has launched an expansion plan dedicated to its SPS branded product line that will see the company double its production capacity over the next year. IN Groupe has already doubled its production capacity dedicated to the SPS product line for identity and banking segments over the last two-year period, reaching 300 million units in 2018. By 2020 production capacity is expected to reach 600-800 million units.

IN Groupe says it is also expanding its supply chain and office capacity dedicated to SPS to improve its customer service and to better serve smart card industrialists worldwide.

IN Groupe production dedicated to SPS is based on a combination of internal manufacturing and production hosted by a set of qualified manufacturing partners.

SPS develops and industrialises its own products and manufacturing processes before expanding the production with its manufacturing partners. This way, the company says, it ensures maximum flexibility and customer proximity.

Philippe Patrice, VP of IN Groupe and CEO of SPS, said: ‘thanks to the extension of our production and support services, we are in an always better position to serve smart card vendors, bringing them the best combination between innovation and a reliable supply chain, allowing them to supply card issuers with best in class contactless and dual interface cards.’

Liberia Launches Biometric ID Card for Foreign Residents Liberia’s National Identification Registry (NIR) has begun the registration and provision of biometric identification cards to non-Liberians living in the country.

NIR says it has set up a new biometric civil registry and will issue the first 1 million ID cards, including 50,000 ECOWAS standard cards this year.

The launch of the biometric foreign residence identification card is the first of its kind in Liberia, and is seen by the government as a means of modernising the national identification system. The new card will serve as an ID credential to be used for travel and the conduct of business throughout the country.

Built-in high-intensity LED UV light sources (365nm) allow the UV dull paper of document blanks, MRZ area or holder’s photo to be checked. OCR of UV luminescent security text and its comparison with the data obtained from the MRZ or VIZ is also available.

In addition, Regula 1120 checks image patterns in white and UV light, detects false UV luminescence and analyses luminescence of UV security fibres.

Regula 1120.01 is equipped with an integrated module for reading RFID chips and works both with Android and iOS devices.

US to Implement CountryWide Biometric Exit Technology The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has announced that the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is planning to implement biometric exit technology in almost all commercial airports over the next four years.

The rollout has been outlined in the department’s ‘Fiscal Year 2018 Entry/ Exit Overstay Report’. According to CBP, biometric exit technology will be used for more than 97% of commercial air travellers departing from the US, with the main intent of catching people who have overstayed their visa.

As of September 2018, only 15 airports in the US had deployed facial recognition, where the technology has been used on over 2 million passengers, with 7,000 of those travellers found to have overstayed their visa.

Currently, CBP checks visas via biographic manifest data or using name and passport number. CBP says the biometric system will be more efficient, providing a 98% match rate.

Regula Releases Mobile Document Authenticator Regula has released a new mobile document authenticator, Regula 1120, which the company says may now turn a smartphone into a specialised device for automated document authentication.

The authenticator works jointly with Regula Document Reader SDK integrated into the user's application. The device is attached to the back of a mobile device and connected to it via Bluetooth Low Energy.

Regula 1120 Mobile Document Authenticator.

IDEMIA Launches Real-Time ID for Law Enforcement Officers IDEMIA has announced the launch of RapID X1, a handheld wireless device for biometric fingerprint identification designed for use by law enforcement officers. The new technology has an FBI Personal Identity Verification (PIV) FAP 30 certified sensor, which ensures the highest quality fingerprint images for its size.

The RapID X1 is an all-in-one device that ensures maximum mobility, with features that include high-quality image capture that is resilient to direct sunlight, dust, dirt, and residual latent prints, easy systems integration with standard NIST interfaces, and built-in 4G/LTE cellular communication.

The technology has been developed to address real-world field environments and situations that law enforcement personnel face every day.

Biometrics are used daily by law enforcement agencies to help verify the identity of potential suspects. IDEMIA says with the RapID X1 device, officers have an easy-to-use mobile platform that helps them do their jobs more effectively and safely in the field as it places the power of mobile identification and authentication into their hands to identify potential suspects.

NEWS IN BRIEF | VOLUME 7 – NO 5-6 | MAY-JUNE 2019

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Secure Identity and Systems – Enter the Tech Giants With the increasing move to digital identity, biometrics and complex data infrastructure that support this – whether for travel, access to government services or payments – a number of the worlds leading tech giants – including Amazon, Google, Apple and Microsoft – are now entering the secure ID market.

UK to Award Amazon £300 Million Biometrics Contract According to UK media reports, the Home Office is preparing to hand Amazon a £300 million contract to store sensitive biometric data.

The UK’s Daily Telegraph reports that suppliers are being pressured to use Amazon's Web Services (AWS) cloud business, despite rival bids from IBM, DXT Technology and Leidos. In response, the Home Office said that the biometrics programme contract was still open.

The Home Office is working on a programme to combine its immigration and police biometric databases of DNA, fingerprints and facial-matching information, in a project believed to be worth £300 million over 10 years.

The redesigned and simplified infrastructure is intended to improve the stability and resilience of the Home Office’s cloud environment, enhance reliability of deployment and improve the security of the production service. It is also meant to increase the ability to scale and optimise infrastructure costs.

According to the Home Office, this will result in more efficient and better protected digital services, ready and available for operational business and live services.

A spokesman for Amazon Web Services said: ‘when customers, including the UK Government, use AWS they always own their data, and it does not move without their consent.’

The Home Office said, ‘faced with the need to improve delivery efficiency, test capabilities and service performance, the Home Office’s Immigration Technology team selected the Amazon Web Services’ (AWS) hosting platform.’

It added, ‘with the move to AWS, the Home Office has undertaken one of the largest cloud transformation projects in government, which has delivered the objective of transforming immigration and visa services. The new platform has given Immigration Technology the foundations for delivering lasting transformation that meets the needs of government and citizens in the future.’

Google to Bring Electronic IDs to Android Google has announced that it is working on bringing electronic IDs to Android so developers can build mobile apps that can be securely used as an ID in place of physical documents.

Separately, the company also confirmed that all new Android Q devices will be required to encrypt user data.

Replacing ID cards, driver’s licences, club membership cards and even passports have been talked about for a number of years.

However, adoption has yet to really take off, despite the increasing use and acceptance of digital payment methods and digital wallet apps. Currently, digital wallet apps can replace plane tickets, loyalty cards, and credit cards, but they still cannot pass for valid ID. Google is looking to change this by adding electronic ID support so developers can build mobile apps that can be securely used as an ID. Google says it wants to make sure its implementation follows cryptography practices and standardisation procedures.

‘We will be providing APIs and a reference implementation of HALs for Android devices in order to ensure the platform provides the building blocks for similar security and privacy sensitive applications,’ said Rene Mayrhofer, Head of Android Platform Security.

6 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | SECURE IDENTITY AND SYSTEMS

Identity credentials will come with a credential store that supports apps provisioning their attributes, and measures their transparency.

The goal is to have Android securely store identification cards, including passports, that can be accessed even when the device doesn’t have enough power to boot.

Currently the mobile driving licence (mDL) ISO standard has not been finalised, although it is the most progressed standard for electronic IDs in the world.

Although Google is contributing to developing the standard, the company is soon to launch a compatibility library that app developers can use immediately to write such apps for various digital IDs in the future, and maybe even travel documents, although standards for electronic passports and IDs for international travel are further out into the future.

Apple’s iOS 13 to Include Support for Reading ePassports and eIDs Apple has announced that its update to Core NFC framework for iOS 13 will include support for reading RFID chips in ePassports and eID documents.

The NFC passport reader app ReadID, developed by Innovalor in the Netherlands, is currently used by the UK Home Office for its EU Exit: ID Document Check app and by European banks including Rabobank, ING, de Volksbank and DNB for customer ID verification. Until now, however, the app has only been available for Android NFC phones as Apple has not previously provided support for the functionality.

The move will make it possible for iPhone users to provide official proof of their identity when signing up for services like a new bank account, without needing to make an in-person visit to a bank branch or other service provider.

As virtually every citizen and consumer with a smartphone can now use apps like ReadID, the development is likely to have a major impact on online use cases such

as mobile onboarding for banks, and is expected to accelerate digitalisation while reducing identity fraud.

The new NFC functionality will make it possible to write to NFC tags from an iPhone for the first time and includes support for Mifare and FeliCa tags, a new kind of ‘value added service’ tag, and for reading and writing to ISO 7816 smart cards and tags as well as ISO 15693 (NFC Forum Type 5) vicinity cards and tags.

The development won't necessarily see widespread use. While the NFC system should be secure, Germany is well-known for being privacy-conscious, with many people uncomfortable with storing their ID cards on their iPhones, even if they are locked down tightly.

Integration with Siri Shortcuts for single tap, multi-step automated workflows invoked by reading an NFC tag is also to be added.

Germany’s government said it may be taking advantage of the upcoming software's support for Apple-approved NFC identification documents to let residents scan their ID cards and use them both online and for check-ins at airports. Users will need to wait for both the release of iOS 13 in September and the German government's AusweisApp2 to make everything work.

Innovalor’s ReadID passport reader app.

Microsoft Developing Decentralised Digital ID System Microsoft has launched an early preview of a Sidetree-based decentralised ID network, called Identity Overlay Network (ION), which runs atop the Bitcoin blockchain and is based on an emerging set of open standards that it has developed with its partners in the Decentralised Identity Foundation.

systems. The most robust, decentralised, public blockchains operate at just tens of transactions per second, nowhere near the volume a world full of DIDs would demand.

The only form of consensus the Sidetree protocol requires is a decentralised chronological ordering of operations, which Microsoft says is exactly what the underlying blockchain provides.

ION is a public, permission-less, open network that anyone can use to create Decentralised Identifiers (DIDs) and manage their Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) state. It has been designed to deliver the scale required for a world of DIDs, while inheriting and preserving the attributes of decentralisation present in the Bitcoin blockchain.

Microsoft says its goal is to create a decentralised identity ecosystem where millions of organisations, billions of people and countless devices can securely interact over an interoperable system built on standards and open source components.

Recent advancements in decentralised consensus systems (eg. blockchains, distributed ledgers) provide capabilities that can be leveraged to create DIDs that are owned by the user. While blockchains unlock the ability to create highly secure, censorship resistant identity systems, their transactional volumes are severely limited when compared to traditional

Together, these components enable the creation of Layer 2 DID networks that run atop existing blockchains (Layer 1) at thousands, or even tens of thousands, of PKI operations per second.

Microsoft’s new Sidetree-based decentralised ID network.

The generic components specified by the Sidetree protocol comprise the majority of ION’s code. ION, like all Sidetreebased DID networks, is a combination of the core Sidetree logic module, a chain-specific read/write adapter, and a content addressable storage protocol that replicates data between nodes.

Unlike monetary units and asset tokens, IDs are not intended to be exchanged and traded. This difference in constraints is reflected in how the protocol is designed and enables it to achieve far greater scale without reliance on additional Layer 2 consensus schemes, trusted validator lists, or special protocol tokens. All nodes of the network are able to arrive at the same Decentralised Public Key Infrastructure (DPKI) state for an identifier based solely on applying deterministic protocol rules to chronologically ordered batches of operations anchored on the blockchain, which ION nodes replicate and store via IPFS. The code for the ION reference node is still under rapid development, and there are many aspects of the protocol left to implement before it is ready for testing on Bitcoin mainnet.

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Tonga to Develop Digital ID System Tonga's government has announced plans to develop digital access to key public services, including significant upgrades to civil registration and national ID systems, following the approval of a $4.65 million grant by the World Bank.

The Tonga Digital Government Support Project will strengthen digital access, efficiency and security in Tonga’s public service by supporting a number of wholeof-government digital initiatives. These include a new national government portal that will improve Tongans’ access to services and information across all government ministries and agencies, as well as improvements to Tonga’s regulations for the digital economy and digital government, data protection and privacy, and cyber security.

The project will also improve Tonga’s civil registration and national ID systems, ensuring that each Tongan citizen and resident is assigned a unique ID number at birth, that their legal identity can be authenticated for accessing services inperson and online, and that birth, death and marriage records are linked. For Tongan families, this will mean that newborns can be registered more quickly, and that all Tongans will have better access to education, health, employment, elections, property ownership and banking. These efforts will accelerate achievement of Sustainable Development Goal target (SDG) 16.9: to ‘provide legal identity for all, including birth registration.’

Tonga’s remote location, small size and dispersed islands pose many challenges to its economic development, including inefficient public service delivery and high transaction costs. Despite recent investments in improved connectivity in Tonga – notably, World Bank-supported broadband internet access – further investment is required to build a whole of government approach to digital government, and to more effectively connect Tongan households and businesses. At present, the civil registration and national ID systems are not effectively linked, and Tonga has limited data protection standards.

The $4.65 million grant comes from the International Development Association (IDA), the World Bank’s fund for the most in-need countries, and will be implemented

by Tonga’s Ministry of Finance. The project has been supported by the Australian and Korean governments.

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Philippines to Start Issuing National eIDs in September The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) has announced that it will start issuing national eID cards in September. Around 6 million Filipinos will receive their documents with the first batch.

Sample national ID card PhilID.

The scheme, signed into law last year, creates a central identification platform for all citizens and resident foreigners in the Philippines, and is expected to do away with the need to claim and present various government-issued IDs for personal and financial transactions.

According to the government, it will also enhance the delivery of basic services to the public, as well as prevent crimes and expedite transactions in the private sector.

The project secured an initial budget of ₱2 billion ($36.8 million) last year, which forms part of an indicative ₱30 billion ($552.9 million) budget for the next five years. The amount will cover the acquisition of the data collection and storage system, as well as the provision of the ID cards. Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), Philippines' central bank, will produce the eID card in a direct government-to-government deal with the PSA. The government is targeting to get 25 million Filipinos on board every year. Once registered, residents will get a 12-digit PSN which will serve as their digital identity across multiple platforms.

The PhilSys will collect the full name, sex, date and place of birth, blood type, and address. It will also indicate if a person is a Filipino or resident alien, and will capture a front-facing photo, full set of fingerprints and an iris scan. The initial application and issuance of the new ID card will be free of charge as part of the government’s social service responsibility.

The PhilID will eventually replace all other government-issued identification except the passport, driver’s licence and Professional Regulation Commission ID. Once launched, the scheme will prioritise senior citizens and the 5 million Filipinos living below the poverty line.

Meanwhile, Philippines' Elections Commission (COMELEC) has announced that it has selected Gemalto along with Nextix as technology partners to develop, deploy and support its Biometric Voter Verification System for the 2019 Philippines national and local elections, with the aim of automating the verification of voters through the use of their biometric information.

Gemalto will provide over 30,000 biometric tablets to enable rapid identification and authentication of voters in the designated precincts across the Philippines. With the tablets featuring Gemalto's Voter Verification System, authorities will be able to reduce fraud by verifying voters' identity via their fingerprints. This is also expected to help cut waiting times for the voters and authorities.

Gemato’s solution was first put to a test during the mock elections held in January 2019, in preparation for the actual polls in May 2019. Instead of manually checking the COMELEC's voters list, members of the Board of Election Inspectors used the Voter Registration Verification Tablet, a system that removes the need for voters to present their identification card.

The electoral board will identify the voter with his or her fingerprint to determine if the voter is registered and belongs to a certain precinct. If the individual is a registered voter, the tablet will validate the registration and the voter will receive the necessary ballot.

Fingerprints serve as a key to avoiding duplication, ensuring that citizens are not able to use several identities to vote multiple times. The Voter Verification System implements a quality control to verify that the data has been captured and verified correctly. Authorities are also able to track voting activity and participation rate via logs and audit reports.

Ipsidy Launches Proof Ipsidy, a provider of secure, biometric identification and identity management services, has announced the launch of Proof™, a mobile identity proofing solution that uses government-issued credentials combined with real-time biometrics. Ipsidy says the solution is intended to provide the highest level of integrity and convenience, allowing customers to meet today’s demands for secure mobile onboarding.

Proof provides remote mobile biometric identity verification and transaction authentication for all types of business interactions with ‘know your customer’ (KYC) requirements. These include major financial transactions, application, enrolment and account opening processes, new customer, remote employee and student onboarding, sale of age-restricted product and building access verification.

Traditionally, significant transactions like these require an official ID check and are in-person events. Proof allows clients to initiate a simple, two-step identity check from anywhere in the world that is completed in minutes by using Ipsidy’s mobile app.

Datapro, a Miami-based developer of advanced software systems for financial institutions, will be the first to deploy Proof into its digital onboarding solution to allow financial services clients to confirm customers’ identities. Datapro is an Ipsidy

partner that services more than 160 customers in 31 countries, ranging from the agencies of foreign banks to banks in Central and South America and the Caribbean, servicing millions of customers.

Using the camera on any Apple or Android smartphone, Proof scans a government ID to extract critical information and, using NFC capability, reads and validates meaningful data that’s stored inherently in government-issued ePassports and eIDs to provide an official identity check. The authenticity of the data in an ePassport or eID is validated from the digital signature and passports can be confirmed as originating from the government that issued them. Proof can also use driver’s licences and other types of national ID cards issued by governments from around the world.

Once an ID is scanned and validated, Proof captures a live selfie that is matched against the facial image stored within ePassport or eID chips or printed on other types of government-issued IDs. If all factors are confirmed, a positive proof result is provided to the requesting party.

Requesting parties can receive all data extracted from the credential, including facial images (live and stored), an image of the ID (if used), a biometric match score, and a record of active end-user consent to the entire process.

Ipsidy offers Proof from a secure online portal, enabling clients to leverage Proof into their business with no integration required. For a fully customised Proof service, system developers can quickly integrate their existing business systems to Ipsidy’s IDaaS platform using REST APIs. A verified identity obtained from Proof can be used across the Ipsidy platform for future biometric, multi-factor authentication (MFA) protection on a variety of account transactions, and within any customintegrated application.

ID3 Technologies Unveils BioSeal French biometric solutions supplier ID3 Technologies has unveiled BioSeal, a robust security solution for combating the forgery of all types of documents, both physical and digital.

The solution consists of inserting a visible digital seal on a document in the form of a two-dimensional barcode carrying the essential information of the document as well as the biometric data of its owner such as face and finger.

The high-density structure of the BioSeal barcode can store a large amount of information, up to 2,000 bytes, in a small,

unmodifiable code. A digital signature guarantees the identification of the issuing body and the integrity of the document, whilst built-in biometric data allows fully offline biometric authentication to guarantee the identity of the document owner. There is also no need to connect to a remote server or a centralised database.

Due to its nature and its unique form factor, the BioSeal is a green solution which can be stored on a mobile phone for later identification, or printed on recycled paper or biodegradable material.

Feitian Launches Fingerprint Power Card Beijing-based smart card and authentication solutions supplier Feitian has launched a new ‘allin-one’ card solution featuring a biometric authentication capability.

Called the ‘Fingerprint Power Card’, the card features a built-in fingerprint sensor, allowing the end user to enrol a biometric profile which is then cryptographically stored in the card’s built-in secure element. Feitian says the solution adheres to FIDO Alliance standards, and can operate over RFID or NFC, enabling biometric authentication during card scans or payment transactions.

In a statement announcing the development, Feitian emphasised the security it affords to users’ biometric data: ‘because the fingerprint data is always stored cryptographically and locally on your device and isn’t sent anywhere else or held by any other party, it makes our all-in-one Power Card the perfect combination of portability and security for access control, identification, and payment solutions.’

The card’s fingerprint sensor was provided by Fingerprint Cards, which announced its partnership with Feitian at the end of 2018. The Swedish biometrics specialist has been manoeuvering for position ahead of the emerging biometric payment cards market, and it appears that Feitian’s new card represents the latest step forward in that effort.

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Canada Launches BlockchainBased Digital ID Network Canada’s major commercial banks – including CIBC, RBC, and Scotiabank – have launched blockchain-based digital identity network platform Verified.Me, creating a holistic approach to digital identity in order to protect the interests of consumers and businesses participating in Canada’s digital economy.

Developed by SecureKey Technologies Inc, Verified.Me provides identity verification online, in person and on the phone. Verification can be performed from any iOS or Android smartphone, using personal information that an individual consents to sharing from his or her connections, such as a financial institution.

The platform uses blockchain technology to securely and privately transfer personal information to trusted network participants, providing easy access to services.

The service is protected with strong security protocols to protect personal information from being identified, accessed or misused.

Verified.Me is built on top of the IBM Blockchain Platform which is based on Linux Foundation’s open source Hyperledger Fabric v1.2, and will be interoperable with Hyperledger Indy projects.

The announcement marks the first time that consumers are officially able to access the application and gain greater control over their digital identities. The initiative is expected to play a critical role in further meeting consumer expectations for privacy and trust when transacting digitally.

Seoul Set to Introduce Blockchain-Based ID Cards Тhe capital city of South Korea is set to introduce blockchain-based identity cards for its 26 million residents as part of an initiative aimed at improving access to administrative services. The latest announcement is a significant step towards mass adoption of blockchain technology.

With a population of almost 26 million, Seoul is the largest city in the country. It is considered as a leading global economy centre with the 4th largest metropolitan economy in the world and a GDP of over $6.3 billion – just behind Tokyo, New York and Los Angeles. It is also home to some of the world’s most well-known tech brands including Hyundai, Samsung and LG. The announcement is an initiative of the city’s mayor Park Won-soon. The new initiative will utilise blockchain to collect urban and administrative data that will allow new services to operate. Amongst these new services will be the integrated authentication system of citizen cards, as well as new ways of improving access to a range of administrative services.

‘Seoul city will collect urban and administrative data based on the world’s best ICT infrastructure and combine it with

Whilst some authorities in the city already have blockchain-enabled services such as mobile eVoting and car sales, the concept of blockchain-based ID cards is a new one.

It also forms part of a five-year plan that was launched at the end of 2018. The plan lays out ways of developing the blockchain industry and the municipality is committed to invest around $12 million into a total fund of $88 million.

In February 2019, the Seoul Metropolitan government announced that it would be investing a total of $1 billion in blockchain and fintech by 2022. In addition to this, the national financial regulator, the Financial Services Commission, announced that it would create a regulatory sandbox for nine fintech companies to operate in.

Mayor Won-soon added; ‘Seoul will make the leap into the world’s best ‘smart city’ that will transform the paradigm of urban administration based on innovative technologies such as blockchain and big data.’

SailPoint Launches 'Predictive Identity' SailPoint Technologies, a developer of enterprise identity governance, has unveiled the SailPoint Predictive Identity platform.

Predictive Identity is built on big data and machine learning (ML) technology which enables an AI-driven approach to identity governance, taking identity from reactive to predictive and autonomous.

The platform automates identity processes using AI-driven recommendations while finding new areas of access and bringing them under governance with auto-discovery.

It provides predictive modelling, allowing for instant discovery and creation of access policies using ML, while ensuring access is always up-to-date with current business needs. By alerting security professionals when potentially dangerous behaviours are detected and, with peer group modelling, Predictive Identity identifies hidden risk due to inappropriate access.

Sailpoint says Predictive Identity has been designed to deliver continuous compliance, quickly shaping and evolving compliance policies with AI-suggested policies using machine learning.

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innovative technologies such as AI and blockchains to provide new services that have not been available before,’ said Seoul’s mayor.

‘The next phase of identity needs to anticipate user access needs, spot and respond to risky behaviour, achieve continuous compliance and adapt security policies to respond to today’s dynamic business environment,’ said Paul Trulove, SailPoint Chief Product Officer.

‘We are once again redefining the boundaries of what a comprehensive identity governance programme should be capable of with SailPoint Predictive Identity.’

‘There are two factors at play among organisations,’ Trulove continued. ‘First, the velocity of today’s business environment is moving at a break-neck pace. This is compounded by the fact that today’s IT landscape is highly complex given the number and diversity of users, applications and data that organisations now manage. Identity and business teams simply cannot keep up with manually analysing identity data and patterns to understand whether the right users have access to the right systems and data throughout the organisation. AI and ML will play an increasingly critical role in how businesses adapt access models as the business evolves, either autonomously or through recommendation-based identity governance processes.’

A Quantum Leap from IQDEMY for Security IQDEMY Chemicals (IC), part of the IQDEMY Group, recently outlined its advances in quantum dot (QD) ink developments for security applications at the High Security Printing™ EMEA conference in Malta.

The IC laboratory works closely with the N Vorozhtsov Novosibirsk Institute of Organic Chemistry of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The laboratory has its own ink production line to manufacture printing inks and a team of scientists and technologists.

QD inks have numerous applications apart from secure and identity documents. They have up to 90% fluorescence efficiency, are extremely chemically and thermally durable and can survive lamination temperatures of 180ºC. They have long lifetimes, are resistant to UV and are versatile in being able to be applied to virtually any surface.

The inks absorb UV light and emit in the visible spectrum. QDs can also be used in varnishes and many other coatings. QD inks and coatings have extremely high lightfastness and so the colours will not change and become less saturated or fade over time when exposed to UV.

What are quantum dots?

Quantum dots are nanosize particles of semiconductors with diameters from 2-10nm. QDs can either consist of one element or a mixture of different elements and can have a multilayered structure, where the core is made up of one mixture and the outer shell out of another.

For use in inks, QDs are multi-layered structures that typically contain cadmium sulphide (CdS), cadmium selenide (CdSe), zinc sulphide (ZnS), indium and now graphene, which are encapsulated in a polymeric enclosure. This is the most widespread type of QDs.

QD colours and parameters?

QD inks can have a variety of colours (over 30), and their monochromatic emission and the QD size enables different colour combinations to be produced, including emissions in the infrared range.

The three main parameters that ‘govern’ QDs are: Quantum yield – which effects the brightness of the glow under UV – the higher the quantum yield the brighter the glow; The emission wavelength – which produces the emission colour; The full width at half maximum (FWHM) of the emission peak contributes to the brightness of the emission.

Emission spectrum of luminophores.

Benefits of quantum dots

There a number of advantages of QD technology which are as follows: Monochromatic emission spectrum giving rise to ‘pure’ colours; Transparency in water-based dispersions and in varnishes; High efficiency with up to 95% quantum yield; 10-20 year lifetime; Heat resistance up to 600°C;

Quantum dot emission spectrum example and parameters.

In contrast, luminophores – which can be an atom or functional group in a chemical compound that is responsible for luminescent properties typically used in inks – unlike quantum dots, have several peaks in different areas of the spectral range and therefore do not provide ‘pure’ colours.

One of the advantages of QDs is that, for the same given illumination, they light up more intensely than luminophores. This is because the light emission of QDs is concentrated in one emission area, whereas the emission from luminophores is spread over the broader spectrum. An example of the spectral properties of luminophores are shown above right.

Suitable for inkjet printing; Colour on demand with a given colour in a 1-5 nanometre (nm) band; High photostability (up to five years); Covert in daylight; Small particle size (2-10nm).

Security applications of QD inks

QD inks can be incorporated into a variety of existing secure documents without the need for any extra processes. Applications include but are not limited to: Continued on page 12 >

An example of a quantum dot multilayered structure.

QD inks illuminated with daylight (left) and ultra-violet (right).

CASE STUDY | VOLUME 7 – NO 5-6 | MAY-JUNE 2019

11

Wirecard Partners with Indian Government for Digital Taxpayer ID Cards Munich-based digital financial technology firm Wirecard has partnered with India’s governmentowned company UTI Infrastructure Technology and Services (UTIITSL) to facilitate the issuing of physical and digital taxpayer identification cards, also known as Permanent Account Number (PAN) cards.

A Quantum Leap (Continued) Sewing or stitching threads for passports;

How are quantum dots detected?

Example of a stitching thread in a passport incorporating QD technology.

Security fibres for security paper;

Holograms;

Every citizen in India requires a PAN card. The card is required to carry out most financial transactions, ranging from opening a bank account to transferring money, but can also serve as proof of identity. UTIITSL already has a network of 62 branches across India and, through the collaboration with Wirecard, nearly 350 cities will be served by approximately 15,000 Wirecard agents authorised to collate and forward citizens’ documents for PAN cards.

With the PAN card, tax entities and individuals alike can keep track of tax payments and declarations, as all information is stored in a centralised database and all financial transactions can be identified. In addition, PAN cards are considered to be an effective measure against tax evasion in India.

12 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS

More complex custom-made instruments can also be used to detect other parameters of QD inks and other forms of marking – for example barcodes, QR codes and other marks or codes that have particular light emission spectrums.

Other applications

Other applications of QD technology include their use in printing of tactile relief effects and their incorporation into polymer film materials, both of which could be used in secure documents.

India’s PAN card.

Wirecard currently provides access to financial and other related services such as ticketing, mobile top-up, insurance or logistics through its nationwide retail agent network, and offers retailers the opportunity to drive financial inclusion in India.

QD inks can be detected using a simple portable UV flashlight detector, a UV scanner or a UV flashlight with photodetector. In the latter case the photodetector can be preselected to be sensitive to a particular wavelength or narrow range of wavelengths.

The intensity of the QD emission can also be measured, and a simple yes or no indicator can be incorporated to verify whether the correct QD wavelength and intensity has been detected.

Example of QD technology incorporated into security fibres.

Wirecard’s retail agents in India will collect documents needed for PAN cards, digitise and forward them to UTIITSL, who will issue the cards and send them directly to customers. As one of the two service providers authorised to issue PAN cards in both digital (ePAN) and physical formats, UTIITSL provides technology services to the financial and government sectors in India.

Other codes include unique QD ink printed hidden QR codes that are printed with more than one QD ink and reveal a multi-coloured QR code under UV light.

Example of QD ink technology incorporated into holograms.

Security printed documents.

Example of a relief effect printed using QD inks.

Example of QD inks incorporated into security printed certificates.

Coding applications of QD inks

Alongside the security feature applications of QD inks, IQDEMY has also developed QD ink technologies for coding applications.

One unique application for payment type cards is to replace the familiar magnetic stripe on the reverse of the card with a quantum dot printed stripe QR-type code.

This is precision printed using five different QD inks over a background colour and enables the encoding of 2,500 symbols.

An example of a card using QD inks. Under daylight (left) and under UV (right).

Up-converting (anti-Stokes) QD inks have also been developed that absorb near infrared (NIR) radiation and emit in the visible spectrum (anti-Stokes refers to the wavelength shift that occurs when the emission wavelength is a shorter wavelength than the original excitation wavelength.)

Summary

Security printing is one of the main applications for QD inks. The inks have unique characteristics that can be utilised in virtually all types of printing (including digital) used in security documents for authentication. IQDEMY has invested heavily in this technology, developing UV curing and water-soluble versions, and continues to push the boundaries by developing a suite of solutions that can be tailored to particular customer requirements for all types of secure documents.

PPG Introduces Teslin EMI/ RF Shielding Material PPG has introduced Teslin EMI/ RF (electromagnetic interference/ radio-frequency) shielding material, a flexible shielding solution developed to provide specific shielding functionality and performance.

Teslin is a durable and highly printable synthetic paper suited for laminated print projects and other applications demanding a tough, high-performance material.

Manufactured by PPG in Barberton, Ohio, Teslin substrate provides a variety of benefits for credential and identity documents, including high-definition colour photos, laser-engraving capabilities, built-in tamper evidence and flexible production and issuance options.

Teslin EMI/RF shielding material has been designed for electronic applications that require shielding to protect RF transponders from illegitimate reading or writing, or provide a durable grounding path. According to PPG, by transitioning from standard Teslin substrate to Teslin EMI/RF, government passport designers can create documents that offer citizens an added layer of protection against data skimming without significantly increasing production costs.

PPG says the addition of RF-shielding capability to standard Teslin substrates creates an even higher level of value and functionality for ePassports. Coated with PPG-manufactured conductive inks, Teslin EMI/RF shielding material can be customised to meet specific requirements for product functionality and shielding effectiveness. For example, ink coverage can be adjusted from full to partial and can be grid patterned or fully coated.

Additionally, by combining the performance features of Teslin and PPG conductive inks, ePassport issuers have a new way of combating fraud without requiring significant additional investment in materials, printing or production processes.

The material comes in multiple grade and thickness options and is offered in sheets, master rolls or slit rolls. Like standard Teslin substrate, the EMI/RF shielding material is compatible with a wide range of finishing techniques – including folding, moulding, perforating, stitching and gluing – without altering the material’s shielding effectiveness.

IQ Structures Wins Award IQ Structures – the Czech optical nanotechnology specialist – recently won the Government Security Award for anti-counterfeit protection organised by Security Today magazine. The winning product, IQ proID, is a new generation of polycarbonate (PC) ID card protection.

IQ Structures focuses on managed nanostructures and microstructures and has developed a new generation of visual anti-counterfeit solutions for polycarbonate ID cards. IQ proID holograms are embossed into a polycarbonate layer and integrated within the card or data page during the lamination process, and do not require the use of adhesives. An unlimited number of transparent and/or metallic holograms of any shape and size can be incorporated to protect ID data – either by covering with transparent holograms or by writing into metallic holograms.

Separately, the company has also introduced a further solution to protect the reverse side of PC ID documents. This is sometimes an overlooked area that criminals are now turning their attention to in an effort to change the pre-existing ID data.

IQ Structures' solution is to add a hologram on the reverse side of the ID card or polycarbonate page in the passport, thereby protecting both sides of the card or data page. The hologram protects the entire card or data page (full face) and cannot be removed, and visibly shows any tampering or manipulation attempts as this results in irreversible disintegration of the hologram.

SPS Introduces C-Lam® IN Groupe’s Smart Packaging Solutions (SPS) has introduced C-Lam®, a new polycarbonate solution for high durability contactless ID documents, built to answer the requirements from the most demanding ID document issuers in terms of reliability and lifespan.

C-Lam combines robustness, life expectancy and artwork design flexibility. Building upon the SPS inductive coupling process, C-Lam consists of a new polycarbonate prelaminate with an inductive coupling antenna and contactless module.

C-Lam can be delivered with chips from many semiconductor and OS vendors qualified for contactless ID applications.

A small antenna is built into the micromodule around the chip and resonates with a larger antenna which is aluminium etched on the support. As a result, there is no physical connection between the chip and the large antenna, removing the risk of failure.

While C-Lam is a polycarbonate prelaminate, the aluminum antenna is etched on a crack-resistant support, making the prelaminate itself crack-resistant. This enables card manufacturers to deliver more resistant cards to their customers.

According to SPS, with C-Lam, designers experience a new flexibility – they can define a contactless card layout without any visible module, freeing up more space for information and allowing it to remain visually consistent with other contactless, or even chipless, designs.

An additional security feature can be added to ID documents based on C-Lam, as it supports CAI® (Custom Antenna Image), a technology allowing the design of the antenna shape to include the issuer-specific coat of arms, symbols or any image. This way the authenticity of a card can easily be verified by transparency, by any law enforcement officer.

Smart card manufacturers can easily integrate SPS C-Lam in their production, without having to change their equipment, process or logistics flows. C-Lam is seamlessly laminated between card bodies, in a regular smart card manufacturing process, without requiring any new development or recertification.

The Government Security Award has been recognised since 2013 and has been previously won by established global market leaders such as Bosch, Assa Abloy, Omnicast and HID Global, along with other breakthrough innovators.

IQ Structures’ ProID.

VOLUME 7 – NO 5-6 | MAY-JUNE 2019

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UK Puts £120 Million Passport Office Contract Out to Tender The UK Home Office has put a £120 million, five-year contract opportunity to digitalise Her Majesty’s Passport Office out to tender, earmarking £40 million more for the procurement than first estimated in an initial market engagement exercise in August last year.

The contract, which can be extended by up to two years, will provide back-office services amid a drive to move away from paper applications.

HMPO says it seeks a commercial partner to provide new replacement services to maintain business continuity while transforming existing arrangements into a modern, digital service. Services will be delivered within two secure Document Handling Units (DHU) located at the supplier’s facilities and are intended to reduce the flow of hardcopy documentation across the business, eliminate geographical restraints, maximise efficiency and quality and improve document fraud detection.

HMPO – which issues over 6 million passports every year – aims to hit a target of making 90% of renewals fully digital by 2020.

The move to digitalisation comes as part of a broader government push to move away from paper-based services, which remain in wide use.

The Civil Service expects to deliver nearly 100 public services digitally by 2020 and is currently delivering 40 major government transformation programmes, including a new Childcare Choices website, the ongoing Universal Credit system and a fully digital tax system, as well as the biggest courts reform programme in the world.

Bolivia and Colombia Celebrate ID Awards in Costa Rica Reconnaissance, organisers of High Security Printing™ Latin America, revealed the 2019 winners of the Regional ID Documents and Banknotes of the Year awards at a special ceremony during the conference in San José, Costa Rica on 4 June.

The ID document awards, of which there are two – Best New ePassport and Best ePassport Upgrade – recognise outstanding achievement and technical sophistication of a document and promote the best in system infrastructure and implementation of a government passport or national identity card scheme.

The first award went to the Dirección General de Migración of the Plurinacional State of Bolivia for the new Bolivian ePassport.

Bolivia moved from an MRP booklet to a phased implementation of an ePassport system in February 2019. Following an international competitive bidding launched by the Ministry of Economy and Public Finance in 2017 on behalf of the Dirección General de Migración, France's IN Groupe was selected to design, manufacture and supply the new ePassport.

The tender was subject to a strict bidding process controlled by the International Civil Aviation Organisation. IN Groupe’s ability to provide the best technical and commercial offer in compliance with the highest levels of security requirements, while respecting an extremely short delivery time, made the difference in this call for tenders.

The new ePassport, which replaces a non-electronic passport, contains about 30 security features, including exclusive watermarks, micro-lettering, inlays, UV inks, iridescent and secure inks, but also one of the latest technologies in the secure identity market: the anti-skimming technology.

This patented technology developed by SPS, part of IN Groupe, is an innovative active scrambling device designed to protect the secure data of citizens from hacking through RFID waves. As a result, the Bolivian ePassport is now one of the most secure passports in Latin America.

Furthermore, the cost for the Bolivian citizen has stayed the same.

In addition, the new ePassport allowed the Bolivian government to meet criteria for the visa waiver programme for the Schengen area. With the electronic document, Bolivian citizens now have the opportunity to travel more easily. This programme facilitates economic exchanges with Europe and simplifies everyday life for citizens.

The award is the result of an efficient collaboration with the Ministry of the Economy and Public Finance and the Dirección General de Migración of Bolivia.

It was presented to the Director General for Passports and Alien Affairs of the Dirección General de Migración of Bolivia Giovanni Salguero López, and IN Groupe's Director of Sales for Latin America Mariano López.

The second award went to Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores of Colombia for the upgraded ePassport launched in July 2018.

The new Colombian ePassport incorporates upgraded security features and a design depicting sites that are part of Colombia’s cultural and natural heritage. According to the Ministry, the decision to modernise the travel document was made as a result of a recommendation by ICAO. Since 2010, when the current administration took office, very few changes had been made to the Colombian passport.

Colombia’s upgraded ePassport.

The new document incorporates a polycarbonate data page to prevent personal details and the photo from being altered and includes new security features such as raised print, diffractive optically variable device, multiple laser image and secondary photo of the document holder.

In addition, each page of the passport booklet depicts detailed depictions of Colombia’s cultural and natural heritage, including the Caño Cristales river, the Tatacoa Desert, Las Lajas Sanctuary, Malpelo Island, and Tayrona National Park.

The award was presented to Oscar Álvarez, Technical Director at Thomas Greg & Sons in Colombia, who produced and supplied the new document.

Bolivia’s new ePassport.

14 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | AWARDS

The Challenge of Digital Secured Documents The first Digital Document Security™ Conference was a resounding success, attracting over 100 participants from 26 countries and 67 different organisations, which compares very favourably with the early outings for other now wellestablished conferences. For example, this is about 50% more delegates than attended early Optical Document Security™ conferences, which now attracts well over 200 delegates and from which DDS emerged.

Attendees were drawn from ID issuing and enforcement agencies, from established security document providers – including Bundesdruckerei, Goznak, SICPA and Orell Füssli – from universities and research institutes, and from the new field of digital transaction and ID systems, such as Google, Veridos and Scytáles.

From physical to digital

The conference examined the transition from physical secured documents – for example, identity documents – to digital methods for financial transactions and storing identity credentials. Whilst acknowledging the disruptive nature, convenience and vulnerabilities of purely digital methods, the conference also looked at whether the two domains of physical and digital can co-exist, and if so how.

The safety and security of digital identity and financial transactions was the underlying theme to emerge from the presentations and discussions.

Dr Mark Deakes, Director of Optical and Authentication Technologies at Reconnaissance, gave an introductory paper explaining the DDS context and the thinking behind it.

A question examined at DDS is whether digital systems can match this level of security and gain the same level of public trust. Several presenters showed how their digital ID, such as Kosovo’s recently rolled out digital driving licence – a system developed by Veridos – or transactional systems work and their built-in security, while presenters from newer companies that specialise in digital systems’ security focussed on their specific approach.

Fragility of trust

At the end of the first day of the conference a buffet dinner was held at which there were nine table-top exhibits. This was an opportunity for exhibitors (Bundesdruckerei, INPI Asia, Jura, Krypten, Leonhard Kurz, Luminescence, Document Security Alliance, Scytales, Signe) to show delegates the products and systems that were being discussed in the event, holding one-to-one conversations to demonstrate or explain these features and systems.

On the other hand, a key driver for digitalisation is public convenience, although this convenience may jeopardise or compromise security.

The two-day conference was preceded by a half-day short course under the title Digital and Physical, Does One Plus One Equal Three? Ian Lancaster gave an overview of the basics of physical document security, followed by a similar overview of digital document security by Alan Hodgson.

Delegates acknowledged the fragility of public trust, identified in a presentation

by Dr Alan Hodgson, Co-Chairman of the conference, who pointed out that ‘trust takes a long time to build and no time to destroy.’

This was followed by a keynote paper from Ian Lancaster, DDS Co-Chairman, in which he pointed out that physical secured documents have a thousand-year history, giving a wealth of experience to the issuers, producers and examiners, so items such as banknotes and passports now have a high level of protection built in.

Micaal Sidorov, Editor of ID & Secure Document News™, surveyed the global trend to digital and eID systems, the sub-text being that we are past the tipping point in the move from physical to digital. This didn’t prevent delegates from expressing their concerns regarding the security of such systems, given the large number of hacking and ID theft cases now being reported.

One result is that the number of counterfeit banknotes and the incidence of fraudulent passports have been falling, but it also leads to the high level of public trust in these and similar documents.

Delegates also supported calls – led by Dr Hodgson – for the introduction of international standards covering identity and payment data stored on smartphones and other portable devices.

He also pointed out that the move to digital systems for transactions and ID represents a shift in the balance of power, from issuers to the public, who own and control what is on their smartphones.

These standards would span the characteristics, security and interoperability of digital driving licences, other ID documents and bank and credit card data.

A technical paper on this topic, published by the IEC, was presented at DDS.

This led to a discussion around the 1+1=3 question, when participants recognised the inevitability of the growth of digital methods, expressed their concern at the monopoly power this is allowing and the vulnerability of networks, while concluding that there is great potential for the use of digital systems and physical documents to operate together.

Response to the conference was overwhelmingly positive. It is the only event that focuses on the security of the document and the concomitant personal information in this fast-moving field, so participants called for it to be held again in a year’s time. Reconnaissance is now looking to run the next event in October 2020 and will be bringing it back to Berlin.

CONFERENCE NEWS | VOLUME 7 – NO 5-6 | MAY-JUNE 2019

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Costa Rica Sees Highest HSP Latin America Attendance The 2019 High Security Printing™ (HSP) Latin America conference took place in San José, Costa Rica on 3-5 June 2019.

Over 50 presentations were delivered over the two days with six dedicated sessions covering travel and identity documents in the region, recent developments, document design, security and personalisation, electronic documents and government services, as well as document fraud and authentication and technology and innovation.

The event opened with pre-conference seminars on 3 June, one of which was dedicated to identity documents.

The event brought together 270 delegates from more than 100 organisations to learn from leaders in the industry in a series of illuminating seminars, case studies, and technology presentations.

The following day conference sessions included presentations from Casa de Moneda de Chile on digitisation for citizenship, Bolivia’s Dirección General de Migración on Bolivia’s recently launched new ePassport and Spain’s state printer FNMT-RCM on the new Spanish national eID card DNIe 4.0.

A dedicated session on design, security and personalisation explored developments in security features including advances in optical and foil-based features, colour personalisation technology for polycarbonate and the future design for passports and national ID cards.

The final day saw presentations from Argentina’s National Department for Immigration on document checking, US Department of Homeland Security on fraud trends at the US southwest border, Interpol on the latest trends in document fraud and NXP on the evolution of Ecuador’s national eID card amongst others.

San José has been the largest HSP Latin America event Reconnaissance has held.

Next year’s event will be held in Mexico City on 1-3 June 2020.

Events

2–4 JULY 2019 Publisher: Reconnaissance International Ltd Editor: Micaal Sidorov (right) Contributors: Mark Deakes, Ian Lancaster Advisors: Alex van Duuren, Ian Lancaster, Alan Hodgson, John Mercer, Monica Peralta, Tony Poole, Achim Hildebrandt Annual subscription rate: £645 plus postage Subscribers to Authentication News, Holography News or Tax Stamp & Traceability News (20% discount). Government agencies: free of charge Ask about multiple/corporate subscriptions.

The editorial team welcomes your news, contributions and comments.

Please send these to publications@reconnaissance-intl.com 10 Windmill Business Village, Brooklands Close, Sunbury, TW16 7DY, UK Tel: +44 (0)1932 785 680; Fax: +44 (0)1932 780 790 www.securedocumentnews.com

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INTERPOL WORLD Singapore www.interpol-world.com

17–18 SEPTEMBER 2019 eID FORUM Tallin, Estonia www.eidforum.org

24–26 SEPTEMBER 2019

IDENTITY & CYBERSECURITY INNOVATION WORLD Marseille, France www.identityandsybersecurityinnovation.org

8–9 OCTOBER 2019 IDENTITY WEEK ASIA Singapore www.terrapinn.com

23–25 OCTOBER 2019 INTERGRAF SECURITY PRINTERS Copenhagen, Denmark www.securityprinters.org

25–27 NOVEMBER 2019 HIGH SECURITY PRINTING ASIA Yokohama, Japan www.hsp-asia.com

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VOLUME 7 – NO 7 / JULY 2019

Digital ID to be Used by 5 Billion in 2024

UK to Launch Digital ID Consultation The UK government has said it will issue a consultation in the coming weeks on how to deliver the effective organisation of the digital identity market, as it reiterated its commitment to enabling the creation of a ubiquitous digital identity market.

Through the consultation, the government says it will work with industry, particularly with sectors who have frequent user identity interactions, to ensure interoperable ‘rules of the road’ for identity.

Juniper Research – a UK-based research consultancy for digital technology markets – has released a report suggesting that the number of people using government-issued digital identity credentials will grow by over 150%, from around 1.7 billion in 2019, to over 5 billion in 2024.

Governments typically provide such cards, which many people in more developed countries have previously rejected.

Juniper Research anticipates that markets across Europe and North America will be led by the financial services sector and digital driving licences, rather than formal government identification.

According to the company, emerging economies in Asia and Africa are some of the biggest markets, as countries leapfrog analogue identities to benefit from the efficiencies digital registration and management bring.

It says mobile single sign-ons will be a large part of several digital identity platforms, with over 1 billion users by 2023, generating over $5 billion in revenues that year.

The report, ‘Digital Identity: Technology Evolution, Regulatory Analysis & Forecasts 2019-2024’, shows that those countries unencumbered by legacy systems are following Estonia’s lead of rapid digital identity development.

For example, almost 12 million people in Malawi are projected to have digital identities by 2022, with Nigeria and other countries supplying digital identity to over 420 million people on the continent on both cards and apps.

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Blockchain and the self-sovereign identity movement are part of this future, but will be a small piece of the puzzle, despite average yearly growth of 35%. Less than 10% of dedicated identity apps are expected to be blockchain-based by 2023.

‘We expect strong growth in blockchainbased digital identity solutions over the next five years,’ remarked research author James Moar. ‘However, with simpler apps being quick to develop and almost indistinguishable from a user perspective, companies and operators will need to be the ones to drive the use of self-sovereign identity forward.’

The Cabinet Office has set out the actions it is taking in partnership with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and other government agencies to deliver on this ambition.

They include the creation of a new Digital Identity Unit, which is a collaboration between DCMS and the Cabinet Office.

The unit will help bring the public and private sector together, ensure the adoption of interoperable standards, specification and schemes, and deliver on the outcome of the consultation They also include the start of engagement on the commercial framework for consuming digital identities from the private sector from April 2020 to ensure the continued delivery of public services. The Government Digital Service will continue to ensure the alignment of commercial models that are adopted by the developing identity market to build, it says, a flourishing ecosystem that delivers value for every user.

The announcement follows on from the recent launch of a new AI Guide for government, a new online marketplace for tech start-ups to sell to the public sector, and the Government Innovation Technology Strategy.

Inside this Issue 1 Digital ID to be Used by 5 Billion in 2024

1 UK to Launch Digital ID Consultation

2 Canada and Netherlands to Launch Documentless Cross-Border Travel

2 EU Introduces Tighter Security for ID Cards

3 Ghana to Incorporate

ECOWAS ID into National ID Cards

3 Secure Identity Alliance Announces Open Standards Identity API

4 News in Brief 5 Are Security Features

for Identity Documents Obsolete Now?

5 DGM Consortium to Produce New Thai ePassport

6 Technology News 7 Company News 8 Bangladesh Begins Issuing ePassports

Canada and Netherlands to Launch Documentless Cross-Border Travel The governments of Canada and the Netherlands have signed an agreement to launch the ‘Known Traveller Digital Identity’ service, intended to facilitate paperless border clearance between the two countries.

The program will allow travellers flying between the two countries to enjoy a seamless journey, whereby a simple face scan will be enough to identify the passengers boarding a plane at departure, and to clear immigration on arrival. Travellers won’t need to show their travel documents or go through any further checks.

Partners of the initiative are Vision-Box, Accenture and the World Economic Forum, in collaboration with implementing partners Air Canada, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, Toronto Pearson International Airport, and MontréalTrudeau International Airport.

The agreement formalises the intent to collaborate, design and implement the Known Traveller Digital Identity Pilot Project.

The pilot will be based on the issuance of a digital identity – a Passenger Data Envelope – for each passenger prior to departure, including the self-service enrolment of their biometrics via a dedicated app. The identity is authenticated by the participating governments, and then virtually travels between the two countries, pre-approving

the passenger to clear the border on arrival as a ‘Known Traveller’, meaning seamlessly, without needing any checks besides a quick face scan on-the-move. This is made possible because the destination authority has been provided with early, trusted and verified information prior to the passenger’s arrival.

This intelligence at the arrival is facilitated by the Vision-Box Orchestra platform already deployed at Schiphol Amsterdam, as part of the Seamless Flow program, allowing automated border control to operate in contactless mode.

Commenting on the development, VisionBox’s CEO Miguel Leitman said: ‘this is an important step in the usage of leading-edge technologies at the service of the crossborder movement of people. The Known Traveller Digital Identity is a key initiative in the domain of Identity Digitisation, beacon of modern travel. It will contribute to the establishment of standards for global interoperability and privacy-preserving identity management models that will bring significant opportunities for the aviation, travel and tourism industries’.

‘This is another key milestone of the delivery of the One iDframework, where our technology and orchestration platform contribute to the concrete expression of modern travel,’ he added.

EU Introduces Tighter Security for ID Cards The EU Council has adopted a regulation which will ensure that identity cards of EU citizens and residence documents issued to EU citizens and their non-EU family members are more secure

The new regulations are intended to improve the security of ID cards by introducing minimum standards both for the information contained in them and for the security features common to all member states that issue such documents. The regulations will not require member states to introduce identity cards if they are not foreseen under national law.

2 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | MARKET NEWS

Under the new rules, identity cards will have to be produced in a uniform, credit card format (ID-1), include a machine-readable zone, and follow the minimum security standards set out by ICAO. They will also need to include a photo and two fingerprints of the cardholder, stored in a digital format, on a contactless chip. ID cards will indicate the country code of the issuing member state inside an EU flag.

Identity cards will have a minimum period of validity of five years and a maximum period of validity of 10 years. Member states may issue ID cards with a longer validity for those aged 70 and above. If issued, ID cards for minors may have a period of validity of less than five years.

The new rules will enter into force two years after adoption, meaning that by the end of 2021 all new documents must meet the new criteria.

Existing identity cards which do not meet the requirements will stop being valid 10 years after the date of application of the new rules or at their expiry, whichever is

earlier. ID cards issued to citizens aged 70 or more will remain valid until their expiry, provided they meet the specified minimum security standards and have a machinereadable zone.

The least secure cards which do not meet the minimum security standards or do not have a machine-readable zone will expire within five years.

The new rules also include strong data protection safeguards to ensure the information collected does not fall into the wrong hands. In particular, national authorities will have to ensure the security of the contactless chip and the data stored in it, so that it cannot be hacked or accessed without permission.

The rules specify the minimum information to be contained in residence documents issued to EU citizens, and harmonise the format and other specifications of residence cards issued to non-EU family members of EU citizens.

Ghana to Incorporate ECOWAS ID into National ID Cards Ghana's government has announced that the country's smart dual-interface national ID card is to incorporate the ECOWAS identity card to save costs and ensure convenience for its citizens.

The government began card registration at the end of April, following an agreement with ECOWAS to have the regional biometric card integrated in the Ghanaian card. The card is issued to citizens from the age of 15 and is valid for 10 years.

Ghana’s National Identification Authority (NIA) unveiled the new national ID card nearly two years ago. President Nana Akufo-Addo became the first recipient of the new document, signalling the start of a massive countrywide registration process to capture the relevant personal and biometric data of Ghanaian citizens.

According to the NIA, the initiative will provide Ghanaians with a modern robust national identification system and a smart ID card that will meet people’s modern aspirations and carry Ghana as a forward looking state into the future.

The new ID card is expected to gradually replace the other forms of national identification documents accepted in the

country. The new ID card will also be linked to individuals’ bank accounts to enhance modern payment systems. With a 128 kilobyte capacity, the Ghana Card will also enable other stakeholders to run their applications on the card.

The identification system is the outcome of a private public partnership with Ghana-based Identity Management Systems (IMS), a subsidiary of Margins Group, which has been tasked to produce the new ID cards, and Latvia’s X Infotech, which has implemented its personalisation solutions for the issuance with five applications – ICAO, MOC, digital signature, authentication and payments.

The new personalisation capabilities cover instant, deferred and centralised issued cards, including production management, stock management and card lifecycle management.

Enrolment has commenced with security agencies, schools, banks and the population in the Greater Accra Region, with central, western and other regions to follow later. Over 16 million cards are expected to be issued during the next 12 months.

Ghana’s national ID scheme is expected to help formalise the economy and rake in revenue for the government through the establishment of a national database, with the ID system as the primary source.

As part of the scheme, the government plans to implement a national digital address mapping system. This will harmonise several systems into a single data resource to aid national planning and economic development.

Biometric registration for the Ghanaian ID cards started 16 years ago but has stalled, with only a handful of cards distributed so far. The absence of a reliable means of national identification has created problems for the administration and management of resources in the country.

Ghana’s new national eID Card.

Secure Identity Alliance Announces Open Standards Identity API The Secure Identity Alliance (SIA), the global identity and secure digital services advisory body, has announced the general availability of the Open Standards Identity API (OSIA). According to SIA, the industry-first open standards initiative will assure interoperability for sovereign ID programs and eliminate vendor lock-in.

Supported by all major global identity providers, OSIA directly addresses the highcost problems of proprietary technology and the lack of standardisation within government identity systems.

SIA says the initiative is ground-breaking in that it effectively eliminates vendor lockin and enables multiple identity registries and systems to 'talk' to one another – independent of technology, solution architecture or vendor.

With these open standards in place, governments will be able to initiate robust identification platforms for their citizens, preserve the value of existing systems, and evolve their environments without fear of supplier or technology dependency.

Developed by the SIA, with the full support of its members, OSIA provides the standardised data formats and open interfaces needed to address the interoperability challenges that have hampered the evolution of national ID systems in the past. The initiative enables governments to freely evolve, adapt and add to their sovereign ID systems, choosing the most appropriate solutions and partners for their needs without the risk of disruption, operational failure or unnecessary cost.

The OSIA functional and technical specifications are freely available on the GitHub collaboration platform.

Frédéric Trojani, Chairman of the SIA Board, said: ‘the decision to create a pioneering new open-standards environment was initiated in direct response to delegate feedback – where the issue of vendor lock-in was identified as a major roadblock hindering the progress of African identity projects. SIA, supported by the world's leading identity providers, listened and responded. Over the past 12 months, SIA has led the development of the OSIA

initiative – which at last gives governments full control over their sovereign identity systems. We're delighted to able to unveil a comprehensive and fully available solution to this problem.’

Debora Comparin, Chair of the OSIA Workgroup, added: ‘the OSIA initiative represents a new era of openness and collaboration between the world's largest identity providers to resolve the interoperability and data sharing challenges that previously left governments with limited options, should they need to evolve their ID ecosystems. The industry's open standards vision means governments are now free to use any technology they choose and can take advantage of innovative and emerging technologies as they see fit – confident that there will be no need to discard existing legacy ID investments.’

INDUSTRY NEWS | VOLUME 7 – NO 7 | JULY 2019

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News in Brief Antigua and Barbuda Phases Out Non-ePassports Тhe Antigua and Barbuda government will discontinue the use of non-electronic passports and has urged its citizens to get ePassports, which will be the only travel document accepted from 1 January 2020.

With effect from 1 June this year, the Passport Office commenced the recall of traditional non-electronic passports.

According to the government, the recall will facilitate the use of only the new Antigua and Barbuda ePassport introduced in April 2017.

Rwanda Starts Issuing East African Community ePassport Rwanda has started issuing the East African Community ePassport through the Directorate General of Immigration and Emigration (DGIE).

The government says the ePassport will make it difficult for people to enter the country illegally, making Fiji more secure.

Fijians travelling overseas will also be able to use the ePassport gates to speed through airport immigration queues.

The new ePassport will be introduced progressively throughout the next financial year.

The government has also revealed that it will implement a number of reforms on immigration citizenship laws. These include the introduction of an expedite procedure for processing work permit applications.

Stringent measures will also be introduced in relation to citizenship applications, including requirements that an applicant must obtain a permanent residency visa in Fiji first, before being eligible to apply for Fijian citizenship.

Lithuania Launches Upgraded ePassport Lithuania’s Service of Technological Security of State Documents under the Ministry of Finance has launched an upgraded ePassport incorporating a suite of modern security features, some of which have been introduced into the Lithuanian passport for the first time.

Rwanda’s new EAC ePassport.

The new document complies with new East African Community (EAC) and ICAO technical specifications, and integrates a number of advanced security features intended to prevent forgery and identity theft.

The introduction of the ePassport follows a directive by EAC heads of state in March 2016 to adopt the new generation passports and phase out variant documents.

Aware of the likelihood of growth in demand, the government has recently upgraded DGIE’s capacities to be able to issue the new documents. According to DGIE, the new security features could, among other things, increase the chances of making the Rwandan passport ‘stronger’ to grant its holders access to more countries without stringent visa requirements.

The new ePassport has been developed in close cooperation with the Identity Documents Personalisation Centre under the Ministry of the Interior, Forensic Science Centre of Lithuania, Migration Department and other institutions, as well as the producer of the new document, UAB Garsų Pasaulis.

The new features include a transparent window in the datapage, multi-coloured image fluorescing under UV light and an element changing its image under different viewing angles.

Since regaining its independence in 1990 Lithuania has introduced four generations of passports, two of which were ePassports.

The document has become one of the most frequently forged state documents, prompting the government to upgrade it seven times over the course of 19 years.

Fiji to Introduce ePassport

4 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | NEWS IN BRIEF

The Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) has introduced a new design with upgraded security features for driver’s licences, permits and identification cards.

The new documents are polycarbonatebased and incorporate a see-through image that changes colour at certain angles, more images viewable under UV light, and a laser-engraved image of the cardholder.

According to BMV, personal information will now be easier to read and the cards will be more durable.

The new documents meet REAL ID identification requirements, which require applicants to present documents verifying identity, social security number, lawful status, and Indiana residency. Non-US citizens will also be required to have a Real ID and must present full documentation to be issued a new credential.

Japan Releases Road Map for My Number Card Japan’s government is to release a road map for the expanded use of the My Number Card in a bid to increase the spread of the national identification system.

So far, this far, has not proved as popular as was hoped when it was introduced in 2016. A set of new programs for the use of My Number ID cards is expected to be released next month.

As of 30 May, only around 17 million My Number ID cards – around 13.3% of the population – had been issued.

The government had previously decided to take more steps to enable people to use national identification cards in place of health insurance certificates at almost all hospitals by March 2023. The use of the ID as a health insurance card will begin in earnest from March 2021.

In an attempt to increase the spread of the national identification system, which incorporates various personal data such as that related to tax and social security, the government plans to roll out a point-earning function in conjunction with the planned consumption tax hike this October.

To avoid potential bottlenecks with the distribution of the cards in fiscal 2022, each municipality will operate its own plan for issuing them.

Demand for the passport in the recent past has grown from 40 to 150 booklets per day. The majority of applicants are students and businessmen.

The Fiji government is working on the transition from traditional paper-based passports to ePassports with enhanced security features.

Indiana Unveils New Driver’s Licence

Lithuania’s new ePassport datapage.

Applications for the cards will also be accepted at an increased number of locations, including public job placement offices, driver’s license centres and post offices, according to officials.

The government has also outlined plans to launch a portal website that will allow users to log in and review details such as their prescription history.

Are Security Features for Identity Documents Obsolete Now?

By Achim Hildebrandt, Former Head of Passports and ID Cards, Federal Ministry of the Interior, Germany There’s much talk these days about electronic solutions, as well as smart processes and technologies and artificial intelligence (AI).

That being said, two things are foreseeable: all replacement processes need time, even those that are basically clear, and their correct application has been tested so that they can be decided upon and introduced. In this sense, we are now facing processes that can be defined using ambidextrous methods.

Secondly, the conclusion that must be drawn when we look at electronic, smart and AI processes is that there is still a need for traditional security features.

This fact is confirmed in day-to-day life. One example can be seen in the EU’s decision to continue using Kinegrams®. The EU member states, the European Commission and the European Parliament voted once again in favour of Kinegrams for the new EU visa.

Looking back to the past, from 1990-1994, when the practical rules for the Schengen area were drawn up, the focus was on creating a uniform cross-border visa for the first time.

At that time, traditional stamps were still being used as proof of a visa. Some countries, such as the Netherlands and Germany, were already using sticker versions.

Political momentum, the technical means available and experience gained were the driving force for modernity and high-quality innovation. The focus was on high security and on the emerging options for improved and automated border controls. It soon became clear that this would take a lot of effort.

From a financial perspective, the once lowcost stamp made way for a high security product equipped with solutions that provided valuable experience for banknotes.

The fact that this new visa concept would become a world-wide success is proof of the pioneering spirit of Schengen.

Incidentally, the alternative discussed at the time was a very pragmatic one, ie. to simply stick a security foil over the familiar stamped visa. Concerns about the foil peeling off and the related risks were the reasons why this approach was eventually abandoned.

Copy protection and hence optically variable elements were then considered for the new visa.

Following thorough and technically understandable and even controversial debate on the copy protection solutions available on the market, the security experts opted for Kinegrams. This led to the worldfamous EU visa Kinegram with its far-sighted EU symbolism (not specifically Schengen because it was apparent that the Schengen visa would soon mutate into the EU visa).

As the visa was developed further, the functionality of the Kinegram was also extended, moving away from the linear focus on copy protection (even though this still continues to be the primary function) and developing further along several lines.

In 1998, for instance, a machine-readable element was added.

The Kinegram developed now for the new EU visa remains true to its roots and yet it looks new and comes with improved security features.

The most obvious new feature is PRIME (PRInt-MEtal in register), a unique combination of partial metallisation and print, which match without any tolerance. The fine metallised guilloche lines are continued by printed lines in perfect register. Such a feature is hard to copy and easy to verify by the naked eye.

The new EU visa Kinegram.

It comes perhaps as no surprise then that the European Central Bank has come to the same conclusions for the new euro note series, which are also protected

by Kinegrams.

Getting back to the beginning, a conventional, traditional security feature technology always proves to be a top-class security solution, physically and kinematically precise, highly aesthetic and secure. And, it makes it possible to survive this ambidextrous time in a qualified manner.

New innovations will come along, but they will have to prove their worth if they are to become established as solutions. And that’s why there is good reason to appreciate conventional security features.

DGM Consortium to Produce New Thai ePassport Thailand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) has revealed that the production of the third generation Thai ePassport will be undertaken by the DGM Consortium, which won the contract following a competitive tender. The contract will include the production of 15 million ePassports in a project worth 12 billion baht (over $3.6 million).

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is introducing a new a generation of passports, offering an option for 10-year validity, and including iris scan data for added security in line with ICAO requirements. The new passport is set to be available in the middle of next year.

DGM is now setting up the systems required for the manufacture of the new passports, which will shorten the request process for applicants to only 12 minutes, from the current 20 minutes.

As part of the initiative, more passport application centres will be opened, providing services at 500 locations from the current 319.

The production of each passport will take only one working day, from the current requirement of two working days.

The new version of the ePassport will include, for the first time, the holder’s iris scan data as another biometric form of identification, in addition to fingerprints collected in the current version. According to the government, the new biometrics will allow for more precise personal identification. Anti-counterfeiting features will be enhanced in keeping with the ICAO’s requirements.

Following the cancelation of the last round of bidding for the tender last year, the MFA has reassured the public of transparency in the procurement process for the new project, with three committees from various agencies auditing the project under the supervision of the government procurement committee, which will be involved in all processes.

VOLUME 7 – NO 7 | JULY 2019

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Technology News Gemalto Launches IDMS Gemalto has launched its Identity Management Service (IDMS) to help governments address issues related to citizen identification and identity management.

Using the latest biometric capture and identity verification techniques, IDMS is intended to enable public authorities to empower citizens with a fully secured and trusted Foundation Identity. The system supports people identification and authentication so they can securely access online and offline services such as education or healthcare, and proves their right to participate in elections, apply for a passport or open a bank account, whilst retaining full control over their personal data.

IDMS provides authorities with a fully integrated, end-to-end solution which can adapt to existing identity schemes and orchestrate its interactions. The process starts with the registration of a person and capture of their biometrics, with easy-to use mobile technology ensuring coverage can reach even the most remote regions.

Registration is followed by entry onto a central database or civil registry and the creation of a unique individual identifier.

This Foundational Identity provides the basis for issuance of digital and physical ID credentials, and subsequent registration with numerous different public bodies and services. All the processes can be verified beyond doubt using the individual's biometrics and unique identifier.

For governments, a universal ID program facilitates accurate planning of public services, and comprehensive social inclusion strategies. Robust protection against the threat of fraud is also provided, as part of the digital ID platform to further boost efficiency, convenience and adoption of eServices.

The Foundational Identity also eliminates the need for individual bodies, such as those responsible for health and welfare, to continually repeat enrolment procedures.

HID Global Unveils Credential Management Service HID Global has added the HID Credential Management Service to its growing portfolio of cloud-based identity solutions.

HID Credential Management Service has been designed to simplify the issuance and management of trusted Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) certificate-based credentials. The PKI credentials can be used by a broader range of organisations for multifactor authentication and converged physical access to facilities, as well as digital signing and encryption of emails and documents.

6 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | TECHNOLOGY NEWS

The service includes everything needed to issue and manage the lifecycle of digital identity and high-assurance credentials using a cloud delivery model.

Most operating systems and browsers automatically recognise these certificates, ensuring the digital identity issued by the service can be used as a foundation for achieving zero trust security.

Endpoint authenticator options include smart cards and USB tokens, mobile app authenticators and converged badges for accessing facilities and IT systems.

According to HID, many identity and access management (IAM) solutions do not cover on-premise applications as well as the cloud and virtual private networks (VPNs), nor address physical and logical access. They also have difficulty supporting zero-trust security models for verifying identities of all users and devices accessing resources from inside and outside physical and logical perimeters. HID says its service solves these problems with several capabilities.

These include end-to-end solutions for both on-premise and cloud protection spanning all requirements for deploying and managing trusted PKI, and for using certificate-based credentials for user authentication. These include broad authenticator options, among them smart card and USB key options featuring embedded secure elements, mobile app authenticators stored on a smartphone, FIPS 140-certified smart cards, and smart cards for converged physical and IT access.

They also include integration with open standard protocols to support evolving security needs and complex, hybrid heterogeneous systems across many locations, functions and architectures; and easy integration and deployment with an organisation’s Active Directory Federation Services (ADFS) using a hosted multi-tenant infrastructure for fast deployment and simplified user on-boarding.

The HID Credential Management Service joins HID Global’s recently announced cloud-based HID Authentication Service for managing and using identities. In addition to its expanding suite of cloud identity platform solutions, the company now also offers a family of on-premise IAM solutions.

OVD Kinegram and Acuant Develop Kinegram Machine Authentication OVD Kinegram and Acuat have launched Kinegram Optical Machine Authentication (OMA) in Acuant's family of AssureID™ document authentication services.

As part of the agreement between the two companies, OMA is integrated as a library in Acuant's software, providing machine authentication for the Kinegram®’s optical features.

Kinegrams are traditionally designed for human visual inspection. With the inclusion of copy-resistant security features, such as specialised metallisation patterns in combination with visible and UV print, Kinerams can now be machineauthenticated using desktop travel document readers.

According to the companies, OMA will make automatic and machine-assisted manual inspection processes more reliable and secure, allowing customers to automatically authenticate the latest generation of travel documents containing a Kinegram.

GET Group Launches ISO Standards Mobile DL GET Group NA has announced that it has created, together with its global partner Scytáles, a fully-functional demonstration of the International Organisation of Standardisation (ISO) standard 18013-5.

ISO 18013 is the international standard for driver’s license credentials and Part 5 specifies the technical and interoperability requirements for mobile driver’s licenses (mDLs).

GET Group and Scytáles have created a partnership to produce mDLs that can be issued and used everywhere. Both companies continue to participate in the development of ISO 18013-5 and support the latest ‘committee draft’ of the technical standard. The standard supports user controlled direct device-todevice communication (offline mode) and user approval of a connection to the DL issuing authority to retrieve information (online mode).

GET Group has successfully demonstrated both modes. Multiple modes of interaction – including Bluetooth LE, NFC, WiFi Aware, QR codes and online requests for ID – mean flexible options for how mDL can be used everywhere around the globe.

‘Transitioning towards mobile identification not only offers benefits in terms of user convenience, it also has the potential to combat fraud, reduce identity theft and positively impact the privacy of citizens,’ said Joel Perez, Solutions Director at GET Group NA. ‘In order for mobile ID technology to truly achieve its maximum potential, driver’s licenses need to go digital soon. We are proud to be working through ISO to ensure standards and technology support widespread adoption of secure, next-generation mobile identification.’

Company News Veridos Partners with Prismade Labs Veridos has announced the formation of an exclusive development partnership with Prismade Labs, with the objective of integrating Prismade technology into Veridos ID cards and system solutions.

Printed electronics will be used to digitally mark ID cards, enabling them to create interactive interfaces with smartphones.

The technology requires neither a chip nor radio waves.

Commenting on the announcement, Dr Silke Bargstädt-Franke, Senior Vice President and Head of Product Management at Veridos, said: 'the integration of Prismade technology into our cutting-edge ID cards enables us to expand our product portfolio in a number of ways. Together, we are developing a new security feature that can be verified even by untrained personnel, with no need for specific readers, and in doing so we are reducing the barriers to digital verification by connecting smartphones in a userfriendly way.'

Jan Thiele, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Prismade Labs added: ‘in Veridos, we have found a partner whose software product expertise has been tried and tested in many different ways, meaning it represents an excellent complement to our many years of specialising in functional, environmentally friendly, and cost-effective printing technology. We very much look forward to soon being able to jointly offer new identity documents and verification on this basis.'

Prismade Labs was founded by Dr Karin Weigelt and Jan Thiele as a technology developer for printed electronics in 2016.

Part of Edding Group, the company develops digital markings for intelligent printed products.

Signicat Acquires Idfy Signicat, the Norway-based provider of digital identity solutions, has announced the acquisition of Idfy, a provider of secure identification and electronic signature solutions, for an undisclosed sum.

Founded in Bergen, Norway in 2012, Idfy is currently one of the fastest growing players within digital trust services in the Nordics.

The deal will see Signicat acquire 100% of the shares in Idfy, with a substantial reinvestment in the combined entity by active Idfy shareholders.

The acquisition enhances Signicat’s reach and portfolio of services and follows its acquisition by Nordic Capital in April this year for €4.3 billion in committed capital.

Idfy has more than 300 customers, with

a strong presence in the fintech and real estate sectors, and offices in Bergen and Oslo.

The Idfy platform allows companies to achieve compliant business processes across a wide range of use cases and security levels. A key driver behind Idfy’s rapid growth has been providing API-based ‘building blocks’ for developers to add secure authentication, signing and sealing to web and mobile applications.

‘With the acquisition of Idfy, we strengthen our ability to execute faster and deliver better digital identity solutions to the market,’ said Gunnar Nordseth, CEO of Signicat.

‘With Nordic Capital as lead investor we will have access to unparalleled competence within operational improvement and transformative growth,’ added Stein Olav Davidsen, CEO of Idfy.

GET Group North America Partners with Secure Planet GET Group North America has announced a partnership with Secure Planet, a provider of facial recognition-based solutions.

Under the terms of the agreement, Secure Planet’s facial recognition technology will be incorporated in select GET Group NA offerings, including its CoreID Personal Data Management System (PDMS) and its GET mID™ Digital Identity Solution.

Secure Planet’s facial recognition solutions are built around the state-of-the-art Rank One Computing facial recognition algorithm and can be deployed in handheld or man-portable modes depending on customer requirements. Facial extraction and matching from still imagery and videos are available in both modes, in a connected or disconnected environment and over a variety of distances.

‘By incorporating their technology into our offerings, we will best enable government agencies, motor vehicle departments, municipalities, law enforcement organisations, and corporate enterprises to implement optimal identity management solutions’, said Gerald Hubbard, Director of Marketing and Communications, GET Group North America.

‘The combination of our technologies will allow governments and organisations to help prevent identity fraud and grant correct access to only authorised individuals’, added Dr Doug Dyer, Chief Scientist at Secure Planet.

Secure Planet offers a mid-range facial recognition capability that can leverage facial images captured via streaming video.

It can collect and match unconstrained faces from individuals at ranges from

5-350m in daylight conditions. Images that are seamlessly extracted from the streaming video can be automatically matched against a database of millions of individuals without a network connection to remote computing resources. Similarly, its midrange still-image facial recognition solution can collect still-images of unconstrained faces of persons at ranges 5-350m in daylight conditions.

Matica Technologies Announces Alliance with Canon Fintech Matica Technologies has announced a strategic partnership with Canon Fintech Nisca (CFN), which includes the joint development of products through the sharing of technology for the government and financial markets.

The partnership’s first joint product is the Matica EDIsecure MC660. This new 600 dpi high-resolution colour card printer for high-level security applications is based on the ID card print engine of the CFN’s printer range and incorporates unique features from Matica’s technology and software.

Under the alliance, the designed products are manufactured by CFN to include unique features not present in the current CFN retransfer printers.

‘We are very pleased to introduce the new product with the collaboration of Matica Technologies,’ said Yoshinobu Kono, Director of CFN. ‘Matica’s established experience in the market, its R&D capabilities and extensive knowledge of the products and markets has helped to create a promising partnership, which will develop innovative technology and products in the international card industry.’

Polymath Teams Up with Blockpass Security token platform Polymath has entered into a strategic collaboration with digital identity verification solution Blockpass for a streamlined identity verification solution.

Through this partnership, Polymath, a decentralised platform for creating and managing security tokens, aims to simplify user onboarding and cut down on the required resources in the process.

Blockpass is a regtech and compliance platform which uses blockchain technology and smart contracts, and provides digital ID verification as a service. It is creating an ecosystem of pre-verified customers for easy and seamless customer onboarding for any regulated business and industry.

COMPANY NEWS | VOLUME 7 – NO 7 | JULY 2019

7

Bangladesh Begins Issuing ePassports Bangladesh’s Department of Immigration and Passports (DIP) has begun the distribution of ePassports as part of its initiative to facilitate migration and international travel.

The ePassport launch was scheduled to start in December last year, but was pushed back to March and subsequently to July this year as the authorities were unable to begin the work within the stipulated time.

DIP said that arranging the fund for the project had delayed the work.

The ePassport has an embedded electronic microprocessor chip which contains biometric information used to authenticate the identity of the bearer. According to DIP, the new travel document incorporates 38 types of security features, including a colour picture of the bearer on the polycarbonate datapage.

Bangladesh and Germany signed an agreement in July last year following Dhaka’s decision to migrate to ePassports.

The €340 million contract between Veridos and Bangladesh’s Ministry of Home Affairs covers the entire value chain for ePassports, from security paper through to eGates. The solution includes the setup of a local passport factory with hightech equipment.

Implementation of the project started in July 2018 and is expected to continue until June 2028. A total of 30 million ePassports are planned to be produced, with 50 eGates set up at border control points.

Initially, the ePassports will be issued from Dhaka. The regional offices will continue to issue traditional passports until they can start issuing the new ePassports. The process to install eGates has already begun at every airport and land port across the country.

With more than 160 million inhabitants, Bangladesh is the world’s eighth most populous country and will provide the highest output of passports with colour photos worldwide. According to the DIP, 10.7 million passports have been issued since April 2010.

The government intended planned to produce the first two million ePassports in Germany. Later, it decided to print them in Bangladesh instead.

Bangladesh’s new ePassport.

Events

17–18 SEPTEMBER 2019 Publisher: Reconnaissance International Ltd Editor: Micaal Sidorov (right) Contributors: Achim Hildebrandt Advisors: Alex van Duuren, Alan Hodgson, John Mercer, Monica Peralta, Tony Poole, Achim Hildebrandt Annual subscription rate: £645 plus postage Subscribers to Authentication News, Holography News or Tax Stamp & Traceability News (20% discount). Government agencies: free of charge Ask about multiple/corporate subscriptions.

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8 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | COUNTRY NEWS

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VOLUME 7 – NO 8 / AUGUST 2019

Asia-Pacific Biometrics Market to Reach $21 Billion

UK and Singapore Partner on eGovernment Singapore’s Government Technology Agency (GovTech) and the UK’s Government Digital Service (GDS) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen collaboration in the design and delivery of digital government public services.

According to Frost & Sullivan’s recently published report, ‘Asia-Pacific Biometrics Market: Forecast to 2025’, national ID projects such as national ID cards and ePassports are expected to play a huge role in driving the AsiaPacific biometrics market towards $21.19 billion by 2025.

Governments across Asia-Pacific are investing heavily in biometrics for national ID cards and ePassport projects, says the report. This use of biometrics, along with implementation of facial recognition technology, across the region will be the main driving force behind this astonishing growth.

The market is currently estimated to be worth $5.39 billion. Public biometrics has contributed 79.4% of the revenue while the commercial segment generated the remaining 20.6%. The biggest technology sector in both segments was fingerprint recognition, which accrued $2.5 billion in 2018 in public sector projects, and $700.1 million in the commercial sector.

‘Technology and solution providers will find significant opportunities in mobile biometrics. With the growing proliferation of mobile devices and wider acceptance of mobile transactions, device manufacturers are likely to make design changes to incorporate biometric features.

Strategic partnerships between financial organisations, payment platform providers, and biometric technology providers will help expand the presence and use of biometric payment platforms,’ said Nandini Bhattacharya, Industry Manager, Industrial Practice, Asia Pacific, Frost & Sullivan.

The study covers biometric technologies across public and commercial applications, analysing vertical markets that have high demand and offer growth opportunities.

It also studies emerging markets and technology trends across China, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, India, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Taiwan, South Korea, Thailand, and rest of APAC. The markets with the highest growth opportunities in the region are China and India.

Continued on page 2 >

www.securedocumentnews.com

In particular, they will share knowledge and best practices in improving the delivery of digital public services, building digital skills and capabilities of government officials, and adopting open standards for government information, data and software.

Chief Executive of GovTech Singapore, Kok Ping Soon, said: ‘the MoU will facilitate greater sharing of experiences and expertise in the development of digital platforms and services. It will also allow mutual exchange of officers to build capabilities and explore opportunities for collaboration to strengthen the digital partnership between the two organisations.’

Head of the GDS, Kevin Cunnington, added: ‘by sharing knowledge and working together, we can ensure that government works better for everyone by leading the digital transformation of public services both here in the UK and in Singapore.’

The MoU comes at a time when the two countries are actively engaged in the SGUK Partnership for the Future. Launched in January 2019, the campaign expands and solidifies existing links while creating new opportunities for collaboration to secure the future bilateral partnership between the two nations.

Inside this Issue 1 Asia-Pacific Biometrics Market to Reach $21 Billion

1 UK and Singapore

Partner on eGovernment

2 Greece Calls Off ID Card Tender

2 Nigeria Cancels All

Foreign Printing Contracts for Passports

3 News in Brief 4 Japan to Expand Use

of Facial Recognition Technology

4 Romania to Introduce New ID Cards in 2021

Greece Calls Off ID Card Tender Greece’s public order and citizen protection ministry has called off a tender for the issue of new national ID cards, saying it will relaunch a competition for the creation of an Integrated Information System for the issue of cards.

According to the ministry, new specifications will include taxpayer, national health service, voter registration, and social security numbers in addition to identification information, thus forming a complete citizen card.

The aim, the ministry said in a statement, is for the citizen card to simplify and facilitate all communication and transactions with public, national and international authorities.

To date, Greece continues to issue nonmachine-readable paper-based identity cards with very little security.

5 Polycarbonate Films

Offer Anti-Counterfeiting Protection for IDs

6 Company News 7 Technology News 8 Tomorrow’s Security Today at ODS

Greece’s current paper-based national ID card.

In April, EU lawmakers approved new rules designed to establish a uniform identity card format across all member states. Aiming to boost border safety and prevent terrorists and criminals from entering the European Union with forged documents, the EU has given member states two years to issue new biometric ID cards whose features will be aligned with those of passports, and which will include a secure contactless chip with the holder’s photo and fingerprints.

Greece has repeatedly been called on to replace its current ID cards with new biometric credit card-sized IDs. Two years ago, the US added pressure on Greece to improve the security of its identity cards, but the country has still failed to launch the new and securer form of identification document, citing costs.

The project – a 15-year contract to include the creation of an integrated management system for 11 public documents, including ID cards, passports, driving licenses, health cards, and social security cards – was initially budgeted at €515 million.

According to media reports, eight companies have expressed interest in the project so far. Once finalised, the winning bidder will have 18 months to design, develop, implement and operate the system, and create the required infrastructure and train staff.

Asia-Pacific Nigeria Cancels All Foreign Biometrics (continued) Printing Contracts for Passports To find greater success across the region, biometrics vendors will aim to introduce mobile applications requiring biometrics data for logging in, rolling out cardless campaigns, such as cardless ATM withdrawal, encouraging customers to use mobile devices for banking transactions, and partner with a third-party providers to explore several ways to successfully deploy novel biometric solutions.

Meanwhile ‘the rising instances of identity thefts and cyber crimes are boosting the adoption of multifactor authentication and multimodal technology systems,’ noted Bhattacharya. ‘These technologies will also receive a boost from the increasing penetration of Internet of Things (IoT) in industries and government departments, which, in turn, will lead to the growth of cloud-based biometric platforms,’ she explained.

2 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | MARKET NEWS

Nigeria’s government has cancelled all ePassport printing contracts abroad, saying that it will now be the sole responsibility of the Nigerian Security Printing & Minting Company. The new directive means all existing contracts concerning printing passports and other documents will not be renewed.

The Nigerian Security Printing & Minting Company (NSPMC) was established in 1963 and was given the responsibility of printing the country’s currency and security documents for ministries, departments and government agencies. At inception, it was the largest banknote and security document specialist printing company in West Africa until its performance dwindled.

After his appointment as Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele set new targets for the company, including zero importation of currency, which has been achieved since 2014.

Commenting on the development, Abbas Umar Masanawa, NSPMC’s Managing Director, said: ‘the Mint has returned to profitability. From a moribund organisation with heavy losses, the company grew from a loss position of N14.6 million in 2014 to a profit of N14.3 billion in 2018. Turnover also grew from N17.8 billion in 2014 to N61.4 billion in 2018.’

‘Other achievements include enhanced production capacity, revenue diversification, reduced cost of production, the institutionalisation of corporate governance, improved staff welfare and industrial harmony, among others’, he added. ‘We will conserve scarce foreign exchange, improve revenue generation, create job opportunities, and boost acquisition and transfer of technology.

News in Brief Malta Reveals New ePassport Design Malta’s passport agency Identity Malta has revealed the country’s new ePassport design, incorporating Maltese scenery and images and state-of-the-art security features.

De La Rue, which has been contracted to produce the new booklet, has now concluded the polycarbonate datapage pre-production run. The next phase includes the printing of intricate imagery on the inner pages, and the booklet’s binding.

The advanced polycarbonate solution consists of a number of individual layers fused together under pressure and heat to create a secure card, which makes it hard to counterfeit without leaving any signs of attack. The security features incorporated will include UV and IR prints and a see-through window, as well as optically variable and holographic elements.

Personal data on the datapage will be laser engraved, producing a very high-quality definition images.

Some 100 million Brazilians, out of a total population of over 210 million, have had their biometric data captured by TSE so far. According to TSE, the data from the ICN can be used by the National Institute of Social Security (INSS) to reduce benefit fraud.

The future roadmap for the project will see the inclusion of other documents such as driving licenses, birth and marriage certificates, as well as public healthcare registration data and national ID cards.

The initial idea for DNI was first floated back in 1997. In 2008, TSE began to gradually re-register voters using biometric information. The DNI project was approved in 2017 and trials took place in 2018, with TSE staff testing the digital ID in February and members of parliament and civil servants in central government joining the trial in May. The service is expected to be fully implemented in 2020.

UK to Launch Trial Scheme Aimed at Reducing ID Fraud The UK government has announced a new pilot scheme to verify the identity of customers in a bid to reduce the number of digital copies being made of passports.

The initiative comes as people are increasingly being asked to upload or let companies make copies of their passports for services such as opening bank accounts, applying for loans or to use online gambling apps.

Malta’s new ePassport datapage.

The new ePassport, which will be gradually rolled out towards the end of 2019, will be amongst the first European passports to make use of this technology.

Brazil to Launch Digital ID Scheme Brazil is preparing to launch its national digital ID service as the government advances a data interoperability agenda aimed at tackling issues such as benefit fraud.

According to the Superior Electoral Tribunal (TSE), which is responsible for the National Civil Identification (ICN) programme, Brazilian states are currently being assessed to determine their preparedness for the scheme.

Technical requirements for the initial launch of the National Identification Document (DNI) in November include the number of citizens already registered in the national biometric database in that state, as well as the number of locations available to perform the validations needed within the mobile app that will centralise citizen data.

The passport scheme will be open to people who have signed up to the government’s Verify scheme, which creates one online ID that can be used across a range of public services. Under the pilot, Verify users will be able to choose the government as one of the ways to confirm their identity when applying for services with participating companies.

The pilot is also partly aimed at boosting the numbers of people signing up to the Verify scheme, which has been criticised for failing to attract enough users.

Russia to Phase Out Domestic Passports by 2022 Russia is planning to phase out domestic passports within three years as part of its national digitisation programme that will see plastic ID cards with chips introduced instead.

The government resumed discussions on issuing eID cards last autumn, five years after it initially considered the idea.

Cost estimates for the overhaul range from 114.4 billion roubles ($1.8 billion) to 144 billion roubles ($2.2 billion). The first card, reportedly, will be issued next July in Moscow. The card might also come in the form of a mobile app in the future.

The pilot will see approved companies asking the government if applicants for services hold a valid UK passport. They will then receive a yes or no answer without needing to see or store a customer’s passport.

The pilot will launch later this year and conclude in 2021, after which the government will decide whether to roll out a wider version.

The new proposals are expected make it easier for people to prove their identity without compromising their personal information, and for businesses to conduct checks. According to the government, this will help make sure more and more people benefit from the huge potential of technology and can use it to shop, bank and access government services.

Last year, the fraud prevention service Cifas reported 189,000 incidents of identity theft in the UK. As well as reducing the need to upload copies of passports online, the scheme aims to stop people having to take passports into bank branches. Government figures estimate that around 400,000 UK passports are lost or stolen every year.

Russia’s new national eID card.

However, according to the latest opinion poll, more than half of Russians are not ready to switch to eID cards.

85% of Russian citizens have heard about the plans to digitalise the main national ID document, but only 31% believe it is a good idea. The majority – 59% – is not excited about the innovation. These are mainly men and young people.

The government has been pursuing a $53-billion Digital Economy Program since 2017 to help roll out digital technologies nationwide by the last year of Vladimir Putin’s presidential term in 2024. Officials have predicted that, as part of the program, four in five Russians will have a digital profile by 2025.

NEWS IN BRIEF | VOLUME 7 – NO 8 | AUGUST 2019

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Japan to Expand Use of Facial Recognition Technology

Romania to Introduce New ID Cards in 2021

Japanese authorities are expanding their use of facial recognition technology to more airports in the country, with NEC Corporation announcing that it has received a new order from the Ministry of Finance’s customs agency, building on a deployment at Narita International Airport that went live earlier this year.

The new identification documents will have the size of the driver’s license, and will feature the Romanian and EU flags, and a chip with the photo and two fingerprints of the holder. A tenyear transition period is planned to allow the changing of ID cards as they expire.

Japanese authorities have announced a biometric traveller processing system for temporary visitors to Japan, which will scan their faces and match them against travel documents upon departure. While NEC’s new contract concerns most of the country’s airports, the scope of the order appears to extend beyond temporary visitor processing, with NEC describing it as an ‘electronic customs procedure system’ and highlighting the anticipated large-scale influx of visitors entering Japan.

The system revolves around NEC’s NeoFace facial recognition engine. A traveller’s face is initially scanned at an electronic customs kiosk, and their face is later scanned again at an ‘exit gate’ at the end of the airport screening process, biometrically matching this later image to the initial registration at the kiosk. Travelers can be scanned passively as they move through the exit gate, with no need to stop again for screening.

The electronic declaration kiosk is also designed to match travellers’ faces to the biometric data in their ePassports, further enhancing both convenience and security.

The new biometric passenger processing systems is expected to be operational in March of 2020, just in time for the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.

4 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS

Romania will start issuing new ID cards in August 2021 to align with the recently adopted EU standards to improve the security of ID cards issued by member states.

According to current legislation, those who are over 55 years old receive ID documents that no longer expire. By comparison, EU legislation stipulates that this should only apply to those aged over 70. Aligning to EU standards is compulsory, the authorities say, so no solution is available for those who refuse the chip-based ID card.

This is the first time the national identity document has been redesigned since its introduction in the early 1990s, and the first time it has seen a major upgrade that includes the addition of electronic functions. The new card is expected to facilitate access to personal data and provide public authorities with a more efficient way of managing personal information.

It is also expected to facilitate and improve the development of, and access to, eGovernment applications and services, from national health and social benefits, to education, voting and legal assistance.

The project, initially set to go ahead in 2006, was postponed in 2008 and 2011 for lack of funds and logistical support. To implement it required extensive upgrades of the National IT System for Personal Records (NITSPR), which forms the basis of the National Registry of Personal Records used to issue identity cards and manage personal data. The initiative effectively required re-establishing the electronic system and introducing a modern and efficient strategy for the automatic processing of personal data, both at the national and local levels.

The first generation cards were made of PVC, the most widely used material for ID cards at the time. They were constructed with a base layer and two external transparent layers, one each side, laminated to form one piece.

The card measured 105 x 74 mm and had the individual’s photo, personal data and a machine-readable zone created by laser printing. Security features were limited to printed background elements, a secondary image of the holder on the front of the card and two columns of digits printed using UV fluorescent inks on the back. The card was subsequently upgraded in 2002 and 2004 to include additional design elements on the front and a guilloche pattern on the back printed with UV fluorescent inks.

The new national identity card will ensure ease of authentication, and international recognition and interoperability, particularly in the EU member states, where the card can be used for inter country travel (Romania is not yet a member of the Schengen area, but has applied to join). Long-term, the card may also replace current health cards by incorporating a specific electronic storage medium which provides the health card functionality.

The new document, which was formally launched in 2014 but subsequently suspended, will be produced by the National Printing House (Romania’s printer for state documents other than banknotes) and is expected to be issued in two distinct forms depending on the individual’s choice. One is an electronic ID card incorporating contact and contactless chips, which store biometric data and fingerprints and allow automatic authentication in systems that use the features. The other is a simple ID card, which only incorporates the contact chip as a storage medium.

Romania’s current ID card (left) and new eID card launched and subsequently suspended in 2014.

The card will be produced by welding together a number of layers of polycarbonate and personalised by laser engraving. Compared to the current card, the format has been reduced to 85.6 x 53.98 mm for convenience in handling, whilst the card itself will be enhanced with a suite of security features, both physical and electronic, making it practically impossible to alter personal data or tamper with the card.

The front of the card will incorporate positive and negative microtext, variable thickness lines and guilloche patterns, rainbow print and UV fluorescent elements, as well as a diffractive optically variable device placed over the edge of the holder’s photograph.

The back will include a CLI (changeable laser image) displaying the secondary photo of the holder and his or her date of birth depending on the viewing angle, a graphic element printed with optically variable inks, as well as embossed elements and machinereadable data.

The government is yet to develop the range of services set to be provided through the use of the new card. But it has already transformed the provision of information through the NITSPR and is bringing the country in line with European and ICAO standards for travel and identity documents and the processing of personal data.

Polycarbonate Films Offer AntiCounterfeiting Protection for IDs Security is a top priority for identification documents. Low cost materials and decentralised personalisation can make fraudulent attacks easier to commit.

With this in mind, security printing firms and card manufacturers are increasingly turning to polycarbonate – a highly durable material with unique physical properties. A number of countries across the world have adopted polycarbonate for their passports and national ID cards, and several US states and Canadian provinces have now adopted polycarbonate-based driver’s licenses.

Covestro is a major supplier of polycarbonate films for travel and identity documents. To meet the growing demand for polycarbonate materials in secure ID applications, the company offers a broad portfolio of polycarbonate films, which are being marketed under the name Makrofol®ID, for a variety of anticounterfeiting needs.

Material benefits

Makrofol films are the latest generation of polycarbonate films for ID cards and passports, developed with the specific aim of improving the material’s performance in the field.

additive, while the central layer has the concentration of standard laser reactive PC films. Putting a high concentration of additive in all three layers would result in a dark film. Because of this, the outer layers are kept very thin and, even with a high concentration of additive, they remain transparent. This unique construction has been patented by Covestro.

The high absorption of the new films aids the absorption of the energy of the laser beam. The consequences of this are that the inks beneath the film are better protected and do not get burned during laser personalisation. Moreover, the chance of laser-induced bubbles is reduced.

The films are also a forensic security feature, because they cannot be duplicated in their structure from single components. They have to be original manufactured products.

Strengthened security

Makrofol ID films are laminated at a high temperature and pressure to create an inseparable bond, making the document virtually impenetrable. Access to the security features and personalised data embedded in the card is impossible without causing noticeable damage, therefore providing superior protection against copying and forgery.

Also, clear window technology presents an additional security feature against counterfeiting attempts. Covestro have developed a very thin film with extremely high opacity that is particularly suitable for the seamless integration of clear window applications.

The principle difference of the films lies in the improved quality of the laser engraving process. This enables the cards to be produced with a higher level of contrast thus making, in particular, the photo of the holder closer to reality, and as a consequence, easier for the interrogator to authenticate in a wide variety of lighting conditions.

The film is different in its construction and chemistry. The principle of its function is based on the fact that the laser reactivity of PC films is not related to the thickness of the film, but to the kind of additive and concentration of the additive used.

The films are made of three layers – two very thin outer layers (c.10 μm each) and one central layer. The thin outer layers have a high concentration of a laser reactive

Thermal lamination of the printed films without the use of any adhesive creates what to all intents and purposes is a single, solid piece of polycarbonate, so attempts to interfere with the film structure in order to get at the watermark will result in the destruction of the card.

Makrofol ID films are manufactured as a white core film, as a transparent film and as a transparent laser-optimised overlay film. These materials are highly durable and outlast other card materials that have been traditionally used in the market.

Multi-talented

Makrofol's particular strengths include high heat resistance and transparency, as well as toughness and elasticity over a wide temperature range. The films also offer good stiffness, and outstanding electrical insulation properties, as well as abrasion and weathering resistance.

Makrofol films are also ‘multi-talented’.

The different types of the polycarbonate films offer specific strengths. They can be formed cold, hot and enable top-quality printing with standard inks using screen or digital printing. The transparent, translucent, opaque or coloured films are noted for their outstanding graphic quality. They vary in different finishes and thicknesses.

With a coating further key properties can be obtained. And, depending on precise needs, these can offer good optical, UV protective and scratch resistant grades.

Covestro’s polycarbonate films are now used for government-issued documents and identity cards in more than 30 countries. The company is recognised by the high-security printing industry as an innovation and technology leader and continues to advance materials technology that enables highly secure, durable anticounterfeiting features.

Covestro is a supplier to the US Government Publishing Office (GPO), which utilises Makrofol ID films for a variety of ID applications.

Covestro’s clear window solution.

The films can also incorporate unique watermarks, with resolutions of up to 1,200 dpi, into existing manufacturing processes.

Every detail of the watermark can be seen in high contrast and with sharp contours when backlit.

‘Polycarbonate materials are a key manufacturing component in helping to strengthen the security of the nation’s secure federal credentials. GPO looks forward to continuing our relationship with Covestro as we move forward in the production process of these important identity credentials, such as border crossing documents and secure smart cards,’ said Steve LeBlanc, the GPO’s Managing Director of Security and Intelligent Documents.

FEATURE ARTICLE | VOLUME 7 – NO 8 | AUGUST 2019

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Company News Veridos Wins Mexico Voter ID Scheme Contract Veridos has announced the acquisition of a major contract with a long-standing customer, the Mexican Instituto Nacional Electoral (INE). The project is expected to deliver a minimum of 74 million identification documents to Mexican citizens during the contract duration of five years. The ID cards are expected to ease verification processes and enhance national security.

The contract includes secure production, personalisation, and verification of Mexican voter ID cards. At a production rate of 90,000 ID cards per day, these identity documents will include 14 pre-printed security features, including forensic and invisible to the naked eye.

Printed at a resolution of 12,800 dpi, the ID cards will be difficult to forge. The personalised documents will include two encrypted QR codes that contain biographic and biometric information about the citizen. A specially developed smartphone-based application will enable a smooth and secure verification process.

Veridos will also provide a service that will enable voter IDs to be sent in a security envelope to Mexicans living abroad.

The interoperable platform will advance the Star Alliance and NEC strategic vision of delivering a seamless customer journey, while strengthening loyalty value within the travel ecosystem.

Once implemented, Star Alliance customers who opt-in will have a seamless and handsfree passenger experience, allowing them to pass through kerb-to-gate touchpoints within airports, such as checkin kiosks, bag-drop, lounges, and boarding gates, which traditionally require both a passport and boarding pass, by using a secure identity management solution featuring facial recognition technology.

With a few easy steps on their mobile device, customers will have the option to enrol in the new platform and can then use their biometrics data multiple times at biometrics touchpoints of any participating airport. Personal data, such as photo and other identification details, are encrypted and safely stored within the platform. From the outset, the system has been designed in compliance with applicable data protection laws making use of the latest facial recognition technology.

HID Global Acquires De La Rue Kenya The Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) has approved the acquisition of De la Rue Kenya Ltd by HID Global,which will take up 100% of the firm’s issued share capital.

Mexico’s New Voter ID Card Solution.

Rene Miranda, Executive Director at the Federal Register of Voters, stated: ‘Veridos’ implementation will allow INE not only to protect the citizen’s identity, but also to enhance security levels. We are creating added value for the environment and society in general, through new and better production and verification technologies and taking care of the entire production process, assuring every step of the production, and considering recycling scrap material processes’.

NEC Partners with Star Alliance NEC Corporation and Star Alliance, an airline alliance, have signed a partnership agreement to develop a biometric databased identification platform that will improve the travel experience for frequent flyer program customers of Star Alliance member airlines.

6 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | COMPANY NEWS

The government has authorised the proposed transaction on condition that existing contracts De La Rue Kenya has with the government are honoured.

Among the agreements is a Sh10 billion ($96 million) three-year contract with the Central Bank of Kenya to print the country’s new banknotes.

De La Rue Kenya Ltd is controlled by De La Rue plc, which has another subsidiary in Kenya – De La Rue Kenya EPZ Ltd. The latter is a 60/40 joint venture owned by De La Rue plc and Kenya's National Treasury.

It is involved in the production of Kenya's currency and is not part of the proposed transaction. De La Rue Kenya, on the other hand, focuses on printing a wide range of security documents and offers government identity solutions such as passports and national identity cards.

In June De La Rue announced that it had agreed the sale of its International Identity Solutions business to HID Global for a cash consideration of £42 million on a cash free debt free basis, payable upon completion.

De La Rue said that exiting the end-to-end identity solutions market is the right one for the group and would deliver the most value to shareholders, strengthening its balance sheet and allowing the company to focus on the other strategic growth areas.

HID Global said the acquisition will broaden its leadership position in the governmentto-citizen identification market and extend its capabilities.

IN Groupe Enters Negotiations to Acquire SURYS France’s IN Groupe, formerly Imprimerie Nationale, has entered into exclusive negotiations for the acquisition of SURYS in an effort to consolidate the French ID sector and create a leading player in identity solutions. According to IN Groupe, together the companies will be able to operate across the full spectrum of the identity market, as well as the track and trace and banking business, from security components to digital and biometric solutions.

SURYS is a global supplier of optical security solutions, with a leading market position in securing identity documents, and state-of-the-art optical and digital authentication technologies. IN Groupe says SURYS’ expertise in authenticating and protecting documents’ variable data, with know-how in image analysis and fingerprinting algorithms, will complete its global offer in the field of identity and services, especially in security components for identity documents and banking activities, biometric solutions, digital identity offering, and traceability of sensitive products.

On a broader level, this acquisition will consolidate the French identity industry for the benefit of French identity papers and documents.

SURYS has over 400 employees across the globe and is currently owned by Hugues Souparis, its founder and majority shareholder, together with private equity funds Abénex and Cathay Capital, and by its management.

Subject to usual regulatory conditions, including consultation with the works councils of both groups, the transaction is expected to close by the end of the second half of 2019.

Technology News Aratek Launches Marshall for ePassports Biometric firm Aratek has launched the Marshall, an all-in-one biometric handheld device with MRZ reading capability for ePassports and other travel documents to help immigration authorities implement tighter border control measures.

The new SDK also includes new functionality for validating the printed text colour of the field versus the template to security text authenticity check, and validating the parameters and content of the barcode versus the template to barcode format authenticity check. Templates are updated to reflect and enable this functionality for corresponding documents.

These are considered massive updates for US and Canada documents and are helpful in cases where validation is available by visible images only.

The database has been updated to include 550 new document templates for 244 countries and territories.

Aratek’s Marshall.

The device features the Access-IS OCR310e miniature OCR reading engine, which captures code lines from machine readable passports, visas, US and international resident permits, as well as European and other national ID cards conforming to ICAO 9303 & ISO/IEC 7501-1. Access-IS’s OCR310e miniature OCR reading engine boasts high speed, accuracy, easy integration and the flexibility to read a wide variety documents.

The Marshall integrates registration, matching, printing, and other functions into one portable module which can be deployed practically anywhere. Built-in printing capability makes it indispensable in many off-site applications.

Regula’s Document Reader SDK comprises 7,572 document templates which help to validate different types of identity documents such as passports, ID cards, visas and driving licences. The software combines a unique set of features, reading all standard and non-standard MRZ formats, RFID chips, and 1D and 2D barcodes.

The document verification solution provides secure and reliable automatic data processing, says Regula, as well as delivering a fully offline operation. The solution is already used by law enforcement agencies, flight booking and online checkin systems as well as fintech, banking and various organisations dealing with identity documents, including International Air Transport Association (IATA). The company says it is extremely cautious of security and privacy, so all personal data which are being processed remain on the device.

The solution seamlessly integrates with various FBI-certified fingerprint scanners such as FAP20, FAP30, or FAP 45, giving customers the flexibility to perform identification and authentication for any application, regardless of location.

‘Security concerns have made border control a top priority for many countries.

Authorities will find that their ability to apprehend fugitives and reduce terror incidents within the country will be greatly enhanced with the Marhsall’s ePassportreading capability,’ said Samuel Wu, Aratek’s VP for Sales.

Regula Upgrades SDK Regula has released a new version of its Document Reader SDK with a number of changes and fixes, along with an updated database of document templates.

Key features of the SDK 4.15.1 include added OCR capability for Chinese (simplified and traditional) and greatly improved OCR for next code pages in Cyrillic, Vietnamese, Latin, Georgian, Turkish and Hebrew.

Regula Document Reader SDK mobile app.

Gemalto Unveils Digital ID Wallet Gemalto has launched Gemalto Digital ID Wallet, a smartphone-based home for all the owner's digital identity credentials.

The company says the wallet represents the next generation of mobile ID, offering citizens complete control over their personal data, with the freedom to decide exactly what information to share, with whom, and when.

At the same time, it provides authorities with the opportunity to create companions for physical identity documents that are straightforward to issue, manage and verify, delivering a powerful tool to fight ID fraud, reduce red tape and boost efficiency.

The solution simultaneously addresses both digital and real world requirements, establishing a true all-in-one identity gateway that puts citizens in full control of their personal data.

According to the company, the Digital ID Wallet brings three value propositions: a single, secure source for any number of different identity services; digitalisation of a comprehensive array of physical credentials and documents; and an entirely new standard in citizen privacy.

The Digital ID Wallet is characterised by the variety of identity-related services it can support. Across both the online and physical domains, the new wallet makes it quick and easy for the user to fulfil the task of proving their identity. So, to open a bank account in a branch, their digitalised identity can be employed in just the same way as its physical equivalent. But now, the same credential can be used to complete the task online as well.

Similarly, if asked by a police officer to show evidence of their right to drive, citizens always have it to hand, safely embedded in their smartphone. And with the ID wallet, that driver's license is also a gateway to additional information, such as its current status and any endorsements.

With a single click, users can also authenticate themselves to fill out tax returns, pay outstanding speeding fines, and get the results of medical checkups. The benefits of this immediate, 24/7 connection to public services is further enhanced by support for digital signatures, enabling contracts and other agreements to be completed, when and where it is most convenient for the user.

In addition to a step change in accessibility, the Digital ID Wallet sets new standards for user privacy and control. Whilst it offers the potential to support any number of different credentials in a single location, each one is securely ring-fenced. The issuer of a digital driving license, for example, cannot access data from a digital health card in the same wallet.

Gemalto says it has designed the solution to deliver best-in-class performance, protecting the wallet against advanced threats and malware attacks, and fulfilling the highest and most stringent security requirements of governments.

TECHNOLOGY NEWS | VOLUME 7 – NO 8 | AUGUST 2019

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Tomorrow’s Security Today at ODS For over 20 years this conference has provided a technical and scientific focus on the latest developments and innovations in optical document security, bringing together immigration authorities, researchers, document and security materials producers, systems providers and law enforcement agencies.

The opening session of the conference on the following day will focus on 'Human Factors and Design’ and include papers from the US Secret Service and De La Rue, the latter entitled ‘Could Commercial Digital Printing Endanger Security Printing?’.

The second session includes papers from the Polytechnique Montréal on ‘Active Electrochromic Optical Security Devices’, ‘A Method to Produce Optical Security Features Using Surface Plasmon Resonance’ from OpSec and papers from SURYS and KBA-NotaSys.

The event will open with a half-day Short Course where two practising expert document examiners will explain how optical security features are copied, altered or otherwise compromised, showing how to detect fraudulent features.

Day two begins with a paper from OVD Kinegram on ‘Transforming DOVIDS for the Digital World’, which is then followed by a paper from Nigeria's Identity Management Commission on ‘Secure and Efficient Solutions in 21st Century Nigeria’. The

The conference programme for Reconnaissance’s Optical Document Security™ (ODS) conference – to be held in San Francisco, California on 29-31 January 2020 – has now been published.

following sessions will include papers from Swiss based CSEM on ‘Transparent DOVIDS Optimised for Readability with Any Smartphone’ and the US Government Publishing Office and National Institute of Standards and Technology on ‘Resonant Cavity Dielectric Spectroscopy for QA/QC Evaluations of Secure Documents.’

An always-popular component of ODS is the conference dinner and table-top exhibit, which takes place on Thursday evening (30 January). This allows delegates to look at and examine the new developments that presenters describe in their papers, as well as other new optical security features from non-presenting organisations. www.opticaldocumentsecurity.com.

Events

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VOLUME 7 – NO 9 / SEPTEMBER 2019

Citizens Happy with Governments Using AI

UK Considers On-theMove Border Controls The UK Home Office and Border Force are considering introducing a new facial recognition technology at airport border checks that would replace traditional passport checks and eGates.

The new technology uses facial recognition and mobile phones, and has been developed to speed up passport control queues.

According to the findings of a recent survey conducted for the World Economic Forum on Ipsos’s Global Advisor online platform, two thirds of adults across 26 countries support the use of artificial intelligence and facial recognition by their governments to maintain order in the country, albeit under certain circumstances and subject to strict regulations.

Only 19% said AI and facial recognition should be allowed as much as needed, even at the risk of citizens giving up their privacy. At the other end of the spectrum, 16% said that it should not be allowed under any circumstances in order to fully guarantee everyone’s privacy at all times.

Support for a limited and restricted government use of AI and facial recognition is held by a majority of citizens in every single country surveyed, ranging from 54% in Sweden to 74% in Malaysia.

Support for allowing government use of AI and facial recognition as much as needed, even at the risk of citizens giving up their privacy, ranges by as much as 32% in India and 30% in Sweden to just 10% in Japan,

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11% in Hungary and 12% in Canada.

Globally, males (22%) are more likely to be of this opinion than females (17%).

Those who prefer a total ban make up at most one quarter of the public in any country: 24% in Germany and 23% in Great Britain, but only 6% in Peru and 9% in South Korea. Globally, people with a lower level of education (19%) are more likely to support banning government use of AI and facial recognition under any circumstances than are people with a university-level education (12%).

Ipsos interviewed a total of 19,106 adults aged 18-74 in the US, Canada, Malaysia, South Africa, and Turkey, and 16-74 in 21 other countries on its Global Advisor online survey platform between May 24 and June 7, 2019. The sample consists of approximately 1,000 individuals in each of Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Spain, the UK and US, and 500 individuals in each of Argentina, Belgium, Chile, Colombia, Hungary, India, Malaysia, Peru, Poland, Russia, South Africa, South Korea, Sweden and Turkey.

Passengers would have to load their passport onto their mobiles through a secure app, which would then generate a QR code to be scanned at an airport kiosk just before entering the biometric border control corridor.

The system will ask travellers to present their passport at a kiosk, and look into cameras to verify their identity by matching the data on the chip with a live photo in order to establish the link.

As the passenger moves through the corridor, cameras pick up biometric data and compare it to the data on the system. A border guard at the end of the corridor monitors each entry to ensure the person going through is the same that enrolled into the system. Any identity not matched to the data on the passport and the system is immediately flagged up.

What the system tends to do is have large empty spaces where people can walk through and yet the control, security and integrity can be maintained.

Veridos, who have developed the tunnel system, say the technology is ready to use and await a future decision from the Home Office and UK Border Force.

Inside this Issue 1 Citizens Happy

with Governments Using AI

1 UK Considers

On-The-Move Border Controls

2 India Launches

World's First BiometricsBased Seafarer ID

2 STA to Advance

Adoption of mDLs

3 Taiwan Goes Ahead with eID Plans

3 Nepal Opens up Bids for Security Printing Plant

4 News in Brief 5 EU Entry/Exist

System Delayed

5 Sierra Leone Launches Digital ID

5 UNHCR Completes

Registration of Rohingya Refugees

6 Company News 7 Technology News 8 HSP Asia Programme

India Launches World’s First Biometrics-Based Seafarer ID In a move to boost employment in the coastal shipping sector, India has become the first country in the world to issue a biometric ID card to its seafarers.

Launched by the country's Shipping Ministry in New Delhi, the project is intended to give fool proof identification to Indian seafarers and facilitate their movement, provide ease of getting jobs and help in identifying them from any location in the world.

India's shipping sector is seeing major developments in the areas of coastal shipping, inland waterways and other maritime activities. This is leading to higher employment in the sector, which is evident in the growing number of Indian seafarers in the international shipping industry. The total number of Indian seafarers who were employed on Indian or foreign flag vessels increased from 1.5 million in 2017 to just over 2 million this year, showing an increase of 35%.

The new card is a smart ID card. It includes modern security features such as an embedded chip, as well as printed security features such as micro prints and unique guilloche patterns. The security of the card is ensured at various levels and through different techniques. At the time of data capture, the live face is cross matched with the passport photo using face matching software. Software has been developed for capturing the facial biometrics and its authentication through the public key infrastructure.

The technology is a marked improvement over two finger or iris-based biometric data.

According to the government, it will make the identification of the holders more reliable and efficient, while protecting their privacy.

The new card conforms with Convention No 185 of the International Labour Organisation on Biometric Seafarer Identity Documents (BSID). India ratified the Convention in October 2015.

The BSID project has been undertaken in collaboration with Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC) in Mumbai. The issuance of the seafarer IDs involves the collection of biometric and demographic details, their verification and then issue of the card. Nine data collection centres have been setup at Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Noida, Goa, New Mangalore, Kochi, Vizag and Kandla. A record of each ID issued will be maintained in a national database and its related information will be internationally accessible.

India's Shipping Minister, Shri Mansukh Mandaviya, launching the new BSID

STA to Advance Adoption of mDLs The Secure Technology Alliance (STA) has launched an initiative to raise awareness, support development, accelerate adoption and educate the US market on the technology and applications for state-issued mobile driver’s licenses (mDLs). mDLs store a digital version of a physical driver’s license or non-driver ID card on a mobile device for use as a form of official government-issued identity in online and in-person environments. With a handful of states in the US in the early stages of adoption, interest in this technology is growing.

‘The mDL market is developing rapidly – more than a dozen states are in varying stages of implementation,’ said Randy Vanderhoof, STA's Executive Director.

‘There is an urgent need for businesses and services providers – from retailers and financial institutions to healthcare providers and other organisations – who rely on customers having trusted forms of

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identification to become educated on mDLs and evaluate how they could benefit from a strongly vetted, standards-based mobile ID.’ ‘The Secure Technology Alliance has participation from the essential solutions providers and end-users in this space and a proven track record for supporting the successful implementation of secure technologies, including EMV and NFCenabled mobile payments,’ added Vanderhoof. ‘This is what makes it the right forum to facilitate cross-industry discussion on the use of mDLs in a secure and privacy enhancing way for identity verification along with information such as age eligibility, residency and other personal attributes.’

The STA initiative includes participation from American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators (AAMVA), driver’s license technology providers, mobile technology providers, security providers, testing organisations, and relying parties including retailers, financial institutions and government security agencies.

Under this initiative, the STA plans to provide resources to educate the US market on the rollout of the technology and the key uses for mDLs, provide guidance on the security of mDLs and the methods deployed for authenticating mobile IDs and facilitate discussions of implementation opportunities and challenges for broader adoption.

Planned mDL activities include educational resources, documentation of relevant uses, webinars and industry-focused workshops that will support relying parties, requirement setters, and integrator awareness and decision making. The STA says that by participating in these activities, product and service solution providers will gain insights to market needs, requirements and opportunities within the developing privacyenhanced mobile identity ecosystems.

Taiwan Goes Ahead with eID Plans Taiwan’s Cabinet has approved a plan to introduce electronic identification cards that combine the functions of the existing national ID cards and citizen digital certificates, starting October 2020.

Proposed by the Ministry of the Interior with the aim of replacing the ID card currently in circulation with a multi-application smart card, the project is budgted at NT$4.8 billion (US$155.52 million).

Taiwan’s Ministry of Interior proposed eID card design.

‘Republic of China (Taiwan) Identity Card’ will appear on the front of the card, along with the Chinese characters for ‘Republic of China national identification card,’ according to the plan. The new card will display only limited personal information, including the cardholder's name, birth date and ID card number on the front, and marital status on the back.

In future, the card could also be used as a National Health Insurance card and a driver's license. The Ministry of the Interior will be responsible for designing the card.

To protect the cardholder's privacy, details such as gender, parents' names, spouse's name, birthplace and address will no longer be shown but will be accessible via the chip embedded in the card. Cardholder’s sex will be represented by different numbers, with transgender people not having to choose a gender they do not agree with for their ID cards.

The government has been mulling the national eID card for a couple of years, aiming to replace the current ID card with a multi-functional and anti-forgery version.

A sample of the new digital ID will be unveiled in April or May 2020 and a card production and issuance system and card centre will be established by September next year, according to the ministry's plan.

According to the Ministry, the new eID card will serve as a physical as well as electronic proof of identification, will allow for digital signatures, privacy protection, autonomy of information disclosure and will help with a transition to a ‘smart’ government, boosting innovative applications and industry development.

The initiative is expected to improve decision-making and will create a next generation governance model by initiating collaboration between the public and private sectors, providing people with more convenient services. The initiative is also seen as an important policy to help the country become synchronised with digital governments around the world.

The government aims to help an estimated 23.59 million people replace their national ID cards with the new digital cards by March 2023.

Nepal Opens up Bids for Security Printing Plant The Nepalese government has put offers from France and Germany to build a new security printing plant on hold, calling instead for global bids.

government, in the absence of a dedicated security printing facility, the government and private firms are spending billions of rupees abroad annually.

The government’s plan to set up its own production of passports, national identity cards and other documents has hit a roadblock, after state agencies awarded contracts and invited global tenders for the printing of the secure documents.

Earlier, the Ministry of Information and Communications had held negotiations with the German government to set up domestic document production facilities, but the deal could not move forward due to reasons related to financial arrangements, amongst others. IN Groupe then came forward, showing its interest to assist Nepal.

Subsequently, the company has offered a loan of €190 million at 2% annual interest but the Finance Ministry has said that the interest rate was too high and has not taken a final call. Meanwhile, the Nepal-based Advantage Group, which is considered to have close relations with Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, recently visited France and signed on as IN Groupe’s local partner.

In July the Home Ministry had awarded the contract for the National Identity Management Information System to IN Groupe. The Department of Passports in the meantime has called for a global tender for the printing and supply of five million passports for another five years, while the Nepal Rastra Bank is in the process of inviting global bids to print various denominations of currency for another three years. Some officials said the government's plan to build local document production facilities are now unlikely to follow through.

In March Nepal's government signed a Memorandum of Understanding with France’s IN Groupe to establish a stateof-the-art security printing facility for the production of passports and secure documents. According to Nepal’s

Nepal’s vision is to become self-sufficient within five years of setting up the facilities and to start exporting secure documents to neighbouring countries in the region within 10 years, and other countries within 15 years.

Around 15 hectares of land have been allocated to setting up the plant, with several tenders for purchasing equipment expected to be released within the next year or so. In the initial operational phase, around 500 staff are expected to be employed directly, with about 25,000 people engaged indirectly from stakeholders’ institutions.

According to the government, around NPR 1 billion ($9 million) can be expected to be collected by the national treasury as a result of the project. The project itself, if it does go ahead, would cost the government around $300 million.

Following the introduction of relevant legislation in 2016, Nepal has set up a Security Printing Development Committee and consequently a Security Printing Centre (SPC) with a view to developing policies, budget and programmes, as well as physical infrastructure related to secure document production facilities.

MARKET NEWS | VOLUME 7 – NO 9 | SEPTEMBER 2019

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News in Brief Vanuatu Launches Upgraded Passport Vanuatu Immigration Services has launched an upgraded passport integrating advanced security features and colourful graphics on the cover. With a validity period of 10 years, it features a printed Vanuatu flag on the cover, along with unique custom designs, state-of-the-art security features and more serial digits to improve security.

The new booklet has been developed by Hungary’s ANY Security Printing Company PLC. According to the company, Vanuatu is the first country in the world to introduce travel documents enriched with such multicolour features on the cover.

Compared to the previous generation passport, the new travel document contains an increased number of security features, including security inks with UV and IR luminescence developed by ANY, high security graphics with optical variable inks, and a special intaglio printed latent image. The unique watermarked security paper incorporates special security fibres and metallic dots manufactured by ANY’s Document Security Laboratory.

At the launch of the new travel document, which coincided with the country’s 39th independence anniversary, Vanuatu’s Prime Minister Charlot Salwai described it as ‘a huge achievement for us.’

Vanuatu has a population of just over 300,000. According to the latest data, 105,000 Vanuatu passports have been issued since 2010. Around 30-36% of the inhabitants currently hold a passport.

Vanuatu’s new multi-coloured passport.

BSP to Produce PhilIDs Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), Philippines’ central bank, has announced that it will produce the country's new national ID cards in a direct governmentto-government deal with the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

BSP will produce 23 million of the national IDs in 2020, based on indicative numbers prepared by BSP officials. The first batch of national IDs for about 16 million is scheduled to be released within the first quarter next year.

4 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | NEWS IN BRIEF

The BSP said it will be leasing card production machines initially to comply with 2020 requirements. It added that it will be unable to do procurement this year because of capacity issues and the timeline for the planned schedule for the IDs, but for the succeeding requirements after 2020 it will be able to purchase its own card production machines. By the end of Duerte administration in 2022, it is expected to print 107 million IDs.

Australia’s Digital iD Gets Government Accreditation Australia Post's Digital iD scheme has been accredited as a trusted service provider under the Trusted Digital Identity Framework (TDIF) that consumers can use to verify their identity when interacting with government departments.

The Philippine Identification System (PhilSys), signed into law in 2018, will be implemented by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). PSA is currently evaluating the bids and conducting post qualification stage after the May bidding for the registration and biometric system.

The national ID is intended to make it easier for Filipinos to have their identification authenticated when transacting with both the government and the private sector. The IDs will contain both demographic data and biometric information such as photograph, fingerprints and iris scan.

Aside from the national ID, the BSP will also take back the printing of Philippine passports, which it used to produce but gave up in 2015.

Malawi to Introduce ePassports Malawi’s Department of Immigration and Citizenship Services has announced that it is looking to fully digitalise its operation by October 2020, starting this November, by replacing traditional passports currently in use with electronic travel documents.

With the current setup, all passport applications and payments are processed using an analogue system, which requires that all documents and material be checked by several sub-departments and officials before being finalised.

The broader migration process has been split into two separate projects: eVisa and ePermit. The Immigration Department started rolling out some permit applications online and soon the eVisa will also be rolled out.

It is expected that several other government agencies, including local law enforcement, the Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA) and Financial Intelligence Unit, will leverage the digital system – specifically in scrutinising applicants for work permits, visitors and business licenses.

Malawi Immigration procured a $35-million contract in 2018 to upgrade the Passport Issuance System (PIS) and introduction of the ePassport. Two Trees Investments, a joint venture with Belgian firm ZETES, has secured the contract.

Australia Post’s digital iD.

TDIF is a governance framework underpinning a federated digital identity program that will enable citizens to verify their identity once in order to then access multiple government services. The system has been designed to have multiple identity providers to give those using the system choice. Before today, the only accredited choice was the government's own identity provider, myGovID, run by the Australian Taxation Office.

Australia’s Minister for Government Services, Stuart Robert, said: ‘the introduction of Australia Post as a second identity provider into the digital identity system is one of the foundational steps needed for the system to develop into a true whole of economy solution.’

Australia Post's identity products and services general manager Regis Bauchiere added in a statement that the TDIF accreditation ‘demonstrates Australia Post’s commitment to privacy and security, and gives consumers and businesses added confidence when using Digital iD for their identity transactions.’

TDIF has been developed iteratively and in consultation with privacy advocates, industry experts, the Australian Payments Council, states and territories and the broader community over the past three years.

Outside of government, Digital iD can be used to verify identity with 18 private organisations, including for venue hire, financial services, and AirTasker for employment. Digital iD can also be used as age verification for entry to participating licensed venues and alcohol purchases in Victoria, Tasmania, Queensland, ACT and the Northern Territory.

EU Entry/Exit System Delayed The EU Commission has said the new EU Entry/Exit System (EES), which will register entry and exit data and refusal of entry data of third-country nationals crossing the external borders of the member states, will be put into operation in 2022, two years later than originally planned.

The agency is responsible for development of the central system, implementation of a National Uniform Interface (NUI) in each member state, secure communication between the EES and VIS central systems and communication infrastructure between the central system and National Uniform Interfaces.

Adopted and then signed in November 2017 by the European Council, the EES will be used in conjunction with the European Passenger Name Record (PNR) Directive which, from May 2018, has been collecting data on air passengers.

Each member state will be responsible for the organisation, management, operation and maintenance of existing national border infrastructure and of its connection to the EES.

Based on the principle that the majority of visitors are ‘bona fide’, the EES is expected to radically change the Schengen Borders Code with the double objective of making borders smart by automating checks and controls on legitimate visitors, while strengthening methods for combating irregular migration by creating a central register of cross-border movements. The system will also replace passport stamps, as they will no longer be needed once the EES starts registering and storing all entry/ exit data.

The key body of the EES is eu-LISA, the European agency for the operational management of large-scale IT systems, which is headquartered in Tallinn, with an operational site in Strasbourg and a backup site in Sankt Johann im Pongau (Austria).

The proposal for the system has been drawn up on the basis of ‘privacy by design’ principles. From a legal standpoint, the proposal is measured with regard to the right to protection of personal data. The data collected and stored, and its period of retention, are strictly limited to what is necessary for the system to function and meet its objectives.

The EES will be a centralised system through which member states cooperate with each other, hence the need for a common architecture and operating rules.

As soon as the EES comes into force, it should be consulted by all embassies or other authorities responsible for the processing of Schengen visa applications, and before making the decision to annul, revoke or extend the period of validity of an issued visa.

Sierra Leone Launches Digital ID Sierra Leone's government has launched its new national identity platform based on blockchain technology and decentralised digital ID. The platform is designed to provide its citizens with formal identity, control over their credit information, and access to digital financial services.

It runs on the Kiva Protocol, a digital identification system that uses distributed ledger technology to address two major barriers to accessing financial services: a lack of formal identification and a lack of verifiable credit history.

Sierra Leone National Civil Registration Commission developed the national digital identity platform with support from Kiva, a nonprofit organisation based in San Francisco that allows people to lend money to low-income people around the world, as well as the United Nations Capital Development Fund and the United Nations Development Programme.

eKYC, or electronic Know Your Customer, a paperless process to identify the identity and determine the credit score of an individual, is just one way the country will be able to leverage the national digital identity platform. The government has worked with several agencies to ensure citizen data protection and the need for authentication by citizens when it comes to their biometric data. With the new platform in place, a KYC check, which would normally have taken two weeks, can now be done in just two seconds.

According to the government, the system will help ensure that every citizen in Sierra Leone has secure and complete ownership of their personal data and information, with the ultimate goal of helping people access the financial services they need.

‘With this partnership in Sierra Leone, we hope to carve a path to a system of global identity and federated credit history,’ said Kiva CEO Neville Crawley. ‘This can unlock capital for the populations who need it most, allowing lenders to massively increase services and the flow of funds to the world’s unbanked.’

UNHCR Completes Biometric Registration of Rohingya Refugees UN refugee agency UNHCR has completed the biometric registration of more than 500,000 Rohingya refugees from Myanmar, providing many with an ID card for the first time. The biometric cards are being issued jointly by the Bangladeshi authorities and UNHCR to all verified refugees over the age of 12.

The comprehensive registration – carried out simultaneously in all refugee settlements in Cox’s Bazar – is meant to ensure the accuracy of data on refugees in Bangladesh, giving national authorities and humanitarian partners a better understanding of the population and their needs. Accurate data will help agencies in their programme planning, targeting assistance where it is needed most, particularly for people with specific needs, such as women and children taking care of their families and those with disabilities.

The new registration cards indicate that Myanmar is the country of origin, a critical element in establishing and safeguarding the right of Rohingya refugees to return to their homes in Myanmar, if and when they decide the time is right for them to do so.

The registration exercise began in June 2018. On average, some 5,000 refugees are being registered daily at seven different sites within the settlements. More than 550 local staff have been recruited, with the goal of completing the registration process during the last quarter of 2019.

UNHCR’s Biometric Identity Management System (BIMS) captures biometric data, including fingerprints and iris scans, which secure each refugee’s unique identity as well as other important information such as family links.

An estimated 900,000 Rohingya refugees live in crowded settlements in Cox’s Bazar, with over 740,000 thought to have fled from Myanmar since August 2017.

VOLUME 7 – NO 9 | SEPTEMBER 2019

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Company News Thales Releases Half-Year Results Thales has published its financial statement review for the first half of 2019. Order intake intake amounted to €6.99 billion, up 10% compared to H1 2018 (-1% at constant scope and currency), driven by solid momentum in the Defence & Security segment. At 30 June 2019, the consolidated order book stood at €31.7 billion, which represents 1.9 years of sales. Sales stood at €8.2 billion, up 9.9% compared to the first half of 2018 following the consolidation of Gemalto (the acquisition of which was completed in April), and down slightly (-0.5%) at constant scope and currency.

In the first half of 2019, the group posted EBIT of €820 million (10% of sales), compared to €762 million (10.2% of sales) in H1 2018, up 8%. EBIT margin increased by 0.4 points at constant scope and currency. The slight dip in the reported margin is due to the consolidation of Gemalto, whose profitability is more seasonal than the rest of the group.

Commenting on the results, Thales’ Chairman & CEO Patrice Caine said: ‘in the first half of 2019, Thales posted a solid performance, once again demonstrating the resilience of its business model. In spite of the slowdown in the commercial space market, as well as a high basis of comparison in the Transport and Defence & Security segments, sales remained stable at constant scope and currency.’

‘The commercial momentum remained solid, with the booking of seven large orders with a unit value of more than €100 million. Operating margin grew organically, led by a very good performance in the Defence & Security segment. The results achieved by Gemalto, consolidated since 1 April 2019, were in line with our expectations. This positive momentum allows us to confirm our 2019 financial objectives. All group teams remain focused on the implementation of the second phase of Ambition10, our strategic plan, and on Gemalto’s integration.’

HID Global Acquires HydrantID HID Global has acquired HydrantID, a provider of management and automation services to secure enterprise organisations’ data, IT systems, networks, and the Internet of Things (IoT). Specialising in public key infrastructure (PKI) as a service, HydrantID has issued over 3 million PKI credentials and secured over 125,000 domains – which HID says is a perfect complement to its IdenTrust business, a leading digital certification authority.

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HydrantID provides PKI-as-a-service solutions that address the security needs of networks and IoT system for enterprise, government, financial and other customers.

The majority of these IoT systems are expected to be online by 2020 and use IP-based protocols requiring PKI-based authentication to secure the identities of machines on a network and IoT data.

‘We are evolving HID’s Identity and Access Management business to provide onestop solutions for PKI services across the enterprise,’ said Stefan Widing, HID Global's President and CEO. ‘With the acquisition of HydrantID, we are now able to offer customers a broader range of options, plus the flexibility and scalability of PKI-asa-service to improve information security.’

According to HID Global, a key benefit of HydrantID is its ability to automate certificate lifecycle events and distribution using industry-standard protocols and ‘out-of-the-box’ integration with common enterprise network software and platforms.

The combination of HydrantID and HID IdenTrust certificate authority services will strengthen HID’s Identity and Access Management solution portfolio to solve customer’s digital security challenges. The joint solution portfolio will allow customers to deploy certificate-based authentication and encryption for protection of complex enterprise data and IoT devices.

HydrantID will join HID IdenTrust, under HID’s Identity and Access Management business led by Brad Jarvis, Vice President and Managing Director. In early 2019, HID IdenTrust was named the number one certification authority in the world for the second year in a row.

In a related announcement, the company has signed an agreement to acquire LUXIDent, a leading provider of radio frequency identification (RFID) components, based in the Czech Republic. The acquisition is intended to extend HID’s market leadership in RFID technology and strengthen its presence in Central and Eastern Europe.

LUX-IDent designs and manufactures RFID components such as inlays, prelaminates, smart labels, wristbands, keyfobs, glass transponders and other finished tag products in low frequency (LF), high frequency (HF) including Near Field Communication (NFC) and ultrahigh frequency (RAIN® RFID). The company’s primary customers include smart card manufacturers, OEMs and system integrators.

With the expanded RFID components portfolio, HID says it will be able to better serve the reported $11 billion RFID market, broaden its smart label offering and address the large IoT spectrum with new capabilities in RFID component design and flexible manufacturing.

The acquisition is subject to regulatory approval and customary closing conditions, with the transaction expected to close in the final quarter of 2019. Following the close, LUX-IDent will become part of HID’s Identification Technologies business area, which is led by Marc Bielmann, Vice President and Managing Director.

Mühlbauer Implements Fiji ePassport Solution Mühlbauer has announced that it has been selected by the government of Fiji to implement a customised, high-secure solution for the personalisation and issuance of state-of-the-art ePassports.

Fiji’s new ePassport.

Fiji's current passport is a machinereadable document with paper data page, without chip and digital photo, signature or fingerprints – a fact which has raised concerns regarding the document’s security and integrity. Introduction of the ePassport is part of a major project to modernise the country's security infrastructure.

The project comprises the specification, customisation, delivery and installation of the necessary IT and security infrastructure, both hardware and software, for the personalisation and issuance of four types of ePassports – Ordinary, Official, Emergency and Diplomatic.

Mühlbauer is also providng services such as consulting and know-how transfer by conducting training for the local staff of the Fijian Department of Immigration (DOI), along with production support, service and maintenance.

Furthermore, Mühlbauer is integrating Fiji's existing Border Management System (BMS) infrastructure into the new ePassport system. It has already delivered the first ePassports in a record time of only 12 weeks upon design release.

Technology News Freja eID – Providing Personal ID Stockholm-based IT security firm Verisec has launched Freja eID, a mobile eID in the form of an app designed to facilitate how private individuals prove their identity to each other online and in physical contexts.

Freja eID.

Freja eID allows users to have a secure digital ID document available in their phone.

According to Verisec, the idea of the new feature is to make everyone feel safer in meeting with other people and to facilitate how private individuals prove their identity to each other. This is done with an ID function that works just as well in the digital as the physical world.

With the new feature, the user shares their ID photo, name and surname as well as their age by showing their phone screen or by letting someone scan the QR code in their device. The user can also prove his or her identity by sending a temporary link with their personal data to someone via the internet; the recipient does not need to be a Freja eID user.

When applying for Freja eID, users’ personal data, ID-photo and ID-Document are controlled by the Freja eID Security Centre. A lookup is also made against public registers to validate identity and the validity of the ID document. Consequently, the personal data that Freja eID users share is verified information, providing confidence that someone who proves their identity with Freja eID is the person he or she claims to be.

Johan Henrikson, CEO Verisec comments: ‘we see that there is a need for a safe and easy way to confirm that the person you meet online really is who he or she claim to be. This ID control between private individuals allows people to, for example, rent, buy and sell things via the internet and to do online dating in a safe way. The goal of the project is that Freja eID can be used in physical contexts that require identification or age control and where the system is integrated with the store or transport system. This moves the ID control from man to machine, which in turn will contribute to increased protection against fraud and ID hijackings.’

Ubisecure Launches IDaaS Digital identity services provider Ubisecure has announced the launch of its new IDaaS product to help developers take applications to market faster with streamlined and secure digital identity functionality in web, mobile and single page applications.

The new IDaaS offering is API-based, which allows businesses to solve complex identity management challenges. APIs provide on-demand expertise that would otherwise require resource-heavy inhouse development. By leveraging APIs, organisations are essentially plugging in standards-based, customisable functionality to their existing technology.

Traditionally, organisations would build identity management functionality internally or, less risky, make use of technology stacks like the Ubisecure Identity Platform.

While software stacks are ideal for larger scale identity use cases, either in the cloud or on-premise, the new cloud-based IDaaS offering provides an ideal solution for more common, simple use cases, such as B2C/B2B Single Sign-On (SSO), which requires fast integration and standardised feature sets.

B2C/B2B SSO use cases are ideally suited to a cloud-based solution, which enables simple access to API functionality; Ubisecure-managed hosting and updating and all the other benefits of a SaaS business model, such as a pay-as-yougrow scalability.

Ubisecure IDaaS offers as standard identity provider support for authentication, integration of unlimited social identity providers, integration to enterprise or custom applications, log retention, option for either single-tenant and multi-tenant, and onboarding via in-house customer success team and SLAs. Optional add-ons are available for more complex use cases, or customers can start simple and build out additional features as their business grows, such as advanced delegation capability and multi-factor authentication (MFA).

According to the company, the new service combines leading best-in-class travel biometrics solutions with Airside’s traveller-centric, consent-driven identity management platform.

Travelers can use the AirsideX app to upload their passport data and photos from the document’s RFID chip, whilst airlines, airports, and other travel providers can use the AirsideX API to request and access traveller’s data via a standardsbased approach.

The platform is designed so that a unique entity is granted access to a designated piece of personal data for a specific use and time period based on need. After reviewing the invitation on their mobile device, travellers can choose to share their passport data with the requesting party with a single tap. Effectively, each piece of personal data is shared with a designated entity only as long as it is required, and the user maintains a full record of which entities have accessed what pieces of data and for how long.

Once at the point of travel, the traveller can opt into a biometric lane, where a highspeed facial recognition solution matches travellers with the official passport photos they have chosen to share with their travel provider, and then deletes the data.

Travellers may also revoke access to their data at any time via the app.

The integrated approach requires no permanent databases of Personally Identifiable Information or biometrics.

Travellers can store their passport data on their mobile device or choose to upload it for each trip. Personal data is not shared with third parties and is not retained on partners’ systems or Airside’s back-end.

Using the highest encryption protocols of distributed key security management means that the whole process is highly secure and seamless. According to the Airside Mobile, by combining industry partners’ deep expertise in travel biometrics with the convenience and security of AirsideX, it has turned the vision of ‘seamless travel’ into a reality.

Airside Mobile Unveils AirsideX US-based provider of digital ID solutions Airside Mobile has unveiled AirsideX, a new digital identity service that enables travellers to process a private biometric authentication to facilitate access to aircraft and airport lounges.

TECHNOLOGY NEWS | VOLUME 7 – NO 9 | SEPTEMBER 2019

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HSP Asia Programme Announced Reconnaissance, organisers of the High Security Printing Conferences (HSP), have announced the programme for the upcoming HSP Asia event taking place in Yokohama, Japan on 25-27 November A total of 45 presentations will be delivered over the two days, with six dedicated sessions covering the Asia-Pacific passport and identity markets, the latest eID and ePassport projects implemented across the region, developments in security, design and personalisation, authentication and verification, as well as digital identity and technology and innovation.

The event will open with pre-conference seminars on 25 November, two of which will be dedicated to identity documents.

‘The Digital Revolution in Fraud, presented

by Michael van Gestel of Onfido, will will focus on the challenges global

organisations deal with when trying to stop targeted ID attacks in a document-notpresent environment.

A number of papers will then explore developments in security features, design and personalisation.

Meanwhile, ‘Digital Disruptors and Secure Documents – for Better or for Worse?’, presented by a panel of experts and led

by Dr Mark Deakes of Reconnaissance International, will examine the impact some disruptive technologies such as AI, biometrics and blockchain are having on the secure document market.

The final day will see presentations on document verification and authentication, as well as developments in secure documents. A dedicated session focusing on innovation and technology will formally close the event.

The first sessions of the conference on the following day will include presentations from Frost & Sullivan on biometrics in the government sector, Malaysia’s Ministry of Home Affairs on the country’s national eID scheme, Philippines Statistics Authority on its national eID initiative and Hong Kong Immigration Department on its new smart ID card and ePassport.

A specialised exhibition of some 35 companies will be held as part of the event, providing delegates with an opportunity to see the latest industry products and solutions.

As usual, the event will also play host to prestigious Regional Banknote and Regional ID Document of the Year awards. www.hsp-asia.com

Events

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VOLUME 7 – NO 10 / OCTOBER 2019

Argentina Launches Mobile ID

PhilIDs to Rollout from April 2020 The Central Bank of the Philippines, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), contracted to produce the country’s new national ID card, the PhilID, has announced that distribution of the new document will commence in April 2020.

The Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) is seen by the BSP as an important tool in the central bank’s financial inclusion agenda by providing an ID to all Filipinos, especially those in remote and underserved areas.

According to the latest survey 52.8 million adults, or over 70% of the adult population, do not have an account with a bank or any other financial institution.

Argentina’s new mobile DNI.

Argentina has become the first country in the world to launch its national ID card on a smartphone. This gives the mobile version of the credential – secured with end-to-end cryptography and with added functionality – the legal equivalence of the physical ID card.

Launching the mobile DNI (Documento Nacional de Identidad), Argentina’s Secretary for Modernisation, Andrés Ibarra said: ‘in these four years we have achieved a transformation of the state in terms of transparency, simplification and innovation.

This launch is one of the results of this long process in which we put technology at the service of citizens.’

Previously, the government had presented the digital driver's license, which operates in a similar way to the new digital national ID card, both in technical terms and in terms of its use and legal status.

The mobile DNI is available through the Mi Argentina app and will be complementary to the physical document. Any citizen or legal resident 14 years or older and

www.securedocumentnews.com

in possession of the latest generation ID card will be able to acquire the mobile version. The procedure is free, and the only requirement is the corresponding physical document.

To register, applicants will need to download the Mi Argentina app onto a smartphone with Android operating system from 4.1 or iOS 11.0 or later, as well as 15 MB of free space in the device memory. Mi Argentina (or My Argentina) is a platform with over 2.4 million users, from where individuals can remotely access different government services.

Following the announcement, Argentina’s government has signed a decree giving the mobile version of the national ID full legal equivalency of the physical card. The virtual credential of the document for mobile devices has full legal value for all public and private transactions. The only limitation is that it cannot be used to vote, at least not until the National Electoral Chamber gives the formal go-ahead.

The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) has recently signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the BSP for the production of 116 million blank cards over a three-year period. According to PSA, the new ID cards will be printed at the cost of $0.60 per piece. Whilst production will be done by BSP, personalisation of the new document will be done by PSA. PSA says it intends to issue up to 15 million IDs in 2020, 50 million in 2021, and the remainder by 2022. The pilot-testing for the registration, which started in September, has shown that the documentation time per person won't be longer than 15 minutes, except for senior citizens which might take longer. The ID will be issued for free.

PhilSys was signed into law in 2018. The national ID is intended to make it easier for Filipinos to have their identification authenticated when transacting with both the government and the private sector.

The IDs will contain both demographic data and biometric information such as photograph, fingerprints and iris scan.

Inside this Issue 1 Argentina Launches Mobile ID

2 PhilIDs to Rollout from April 2020

2 Canadians Ready for Digital ID

3 EC Launches API

Canadians Ready for Digital ID A new study from the Digital ID and Authentication Council of Canada (DIACC) has found that more than 70% of Canadians want to see governments and the private sector come together to collaborate on a joint digital ID framework, enabling increased access to government benefits, healthcare, eCommerce, and financial services.

In addition, Canadians are concerned with how social media platforms store their personal information; just one-third (34%) trust social media platforms to keep their information secure, compared to the 83% who are more trusting of government and financial institutions (81%) with their personal information.

Directive Consultation

3 New Changes Await Korean Passports

4 News in Brief 5 Nepal to Suspend

eID Card Distribution

5 Bermuda Developing Blockchain-Based ID

5 Bangladesh Delays

ePassport Launch Again

6 Company News 7 Uganda's ID Project in Record Time

7 Liechtenstein to

Launch New eID

8 De La Rue Launches IDProtect

The survey, conducted by Burak Jacobson Research Partners, a market research consulting firm headquartered in Toronto, also found that Canadians are spending one-third of their time online. While almost 80% of Canadians have taken action to safeguard their personal information online, 68% have admitted to sharing their personal details out of convenience.

According to the study, Canadians are comfortable using a digital ID to authenticate their online engagement with day-to-day service providers, in industries such as government agencies (76%), financial institutions (75%), healthcare providers (74%), credit cards (66%), telecomms (63%) and eCommerce (63%).

‘Digital ID has far-reaching impacts for all Canadians, and we are thrilled that Canadians see the value in this and are eager to see governments and the private sector working together to achieve this,’ said Joni Brennan, President of DIACC. ‘A Pan-Canadian Digital Identity strategy – founded in collaboration, openness, and trust – will help to grow the economy, enhance security, simplify transactions, and drive greater inclusion’, he added.

The study adds that, while digital ID is currently being introduced in governments and by some financial institutions, a number of current digital financial services transactions are not secure and could be made so through the use of a digital ID. While Canadians need to understand and educate themselves better about digital ID, almost half of Canadians (46%) claim they are familiar with the concept.

Created as a result of the federal government’s Task Force for the Payments System Review, the DIACC is a non-profit coalition of public and private sector leaders committed to developing a Canadian digital identification and authentication framework to enable Canada’s participation in the global economy. DIACC members include representatives from both the federal and provincial levels of government, as well as the private sector.

EC Launches API Directive Consultation The European Commission (EC) has launched a consultation on the Advance Passenger Information (API) Directive, which is now 15 years old, in the light of its objectives to combat irregular immigration and improve border control.

The EC says it is interested to hear the views from all citizens, as well as nongovernment, public or private organisations with an interest in the API Directive and in border management. These include competent government authorities at state, regional and local level, international and European industry organisations in the transport (air, sea, land) sector, airlines, land and sea carriers, private IT solutions providers, passenger associations, NGOs and civil society organisations.

2 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | MARKET NEWS

The Council Directive 2004/82/EC of 29 April 2004 on the obligation of carriers to communicate passenger data or API regulates the collection and transmission of API data. This data is information on passengers contained in travel documents such as passports and identity cards, which is collected by air carriers during check-in and transmitted by these carriers after check-in closure to the border control authorities of the country of destination.

These authorities screen the passengers while in-flight. Border checks for travellers of good faith are therefore expedited upon arrival, while more resources and time can be spent to identify travellers who need further investigation.

The Directive also allows the use of API data for law enforcement purposes, so the evaluation will also assess to what extent it has been effective in supporting law enforcement authorities in EU member states.

According to the EC, the aim of the consultation is to ensure that all interested parties have the opportunity to provide feedback on the compliance and the quality of the transposition of the API Directive and on its functioning. The EC will be able to gauge the relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, coherence and added value of the Directive for member states in improving border control, combating irregular immigration and supporting their law enforcement authorities.

New Changes Await Korean Passports Korea Minting, Security Printing & ID Card Operating Corporation (KOMSCO) plans to introduce next generation electronic passports in the second half of 2020 with a new cover colour, design and materials, as well as enhanced security features, according to Korea’s Foreign Ministry ePassport replacement plan. KOMSCO is also seeking to target overseas markets for electronic passports and resident cards.

Korean passports are set to get a dramatic makeover. The design of the cover, visa pages and datapage will be renewed for the first time in 32 years. New colours including navy will be used for the cover, replacing the green cover of the current passport.

The back of the cover and inner pages will feature various images that represent Korean tradition and culture.

Korea’s current passport cover (left) and redesigned cover (right).

To prevent personal information leakage, passport numbers will be encrypted, and resident numbers will be deleted from the passport. Also, the material for the datapage will be changed from paper to polycarbonate. In the last decade or so polycarbonate has become a material of choice for passport datapages for its transparency, durability, shock and heat resistance. Furthermore, the security of passports will be drastically improved, with facial image and personal data laser engraved onto the datapage.

Visa pages design. ‘Hunminjeongeum’ (pages 18 and 19, left) – the classic version of Hangeul created by King Sejong of the Joseon Dynasty. ‘Irworobongdo’ (pages 24 and 25, right) – the painting of the sun, moon and five peaks, painted mainly as folding screens and placed behind the King’s throne in the Joseon Dynasty.

Along with manufacturing the next generation electronic passports, KOMSCO plans to actively target the global market.

It supplied 3 million electronic resident cards to Central Asia in 2017 and exported 5 million units of IC chipsets for electronic passports and ID cards to the Middle East in the same year.

Polycarbonate datapage with passport holder’s image and data laser engraved.

Established in 1951, KOMSCO is the South Korea’s only public manufacturing corporation producing over 110 types of products, including banknote paper and finished banknotes, resident cards and ePassports, secure documents as well as coins and medals.

Thailand to Introduce Upgraded ePassport Thailand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs is planning to introduce a new technically advanced ePassport as part of the ‘Thailand 4.0’ initiative, which is aimed at developing Thailand into an innovative, dynamic and value-driven economy.

Thai citizens can look forward to a newly designed 64-page biometric travel document which includes an eCover with a thin, flexible datapage made of polycarbonate, as well as a window containing a second image of the citizen and a true colour UV photo.

Launched in 2018, ‘Thailand 4.0’ is the government’s ambitious 20-year strategy to accelerate the country’s development to a more advanced level and has been designed to promote and support innovation, creativity, research and development, higher technologies as well as green technologies.

According to MOFA, these security features will ensure that the document complies with the highest standards of security recommended by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). Thai citizens will also benefit from the highest level of performance of the secure embedded software for fast border crossing. DGM Consortium said it will implement a highly secure end-to-end ePassport system that complies strictly with the Personal Data Protection Act of Thailand.

As part of the programme, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) says it will provide 15 million technically-advanced, high-security ePassports to Thai citizens through the DGM Consortium who will produce and supply the new travel document. The consortium includes Gemalto (a Thales Company), Data Products Toppan Forms and MultiCert.

The Thai aPassport project is the largest passport project contracted for the Group in 2019.

The current passport production capacity will increase significantly, as two active high security production sites – a remote and a main facility – will be established as part of the project to ensure business continuity and security for passport issuance. By providing continuous training and transferof-technology to develop local expertise

in passport issuance, Thales says it will leverage its global technological expertise to upskill the Thai workforce as it moves towards a digital future.

Beyond a newly-designed passport, Thai citizens will benefit from greater efficiency in registering for their passports, as the project will upgrade citizen-facing enrolment operations in 22 existing managed sites throughout Thailand. There is also an expansion plan to establish 15 new sites throughout the country, offering more service points for Thai citizens to obtain their travel documents.

Thales has been a partner to Thailand for more than 30 years in industry sectors ranging from defence to air traffic management and to ground transportation.

According to the company, the ePassport project will bring its technology expertise in the digital identity and biometrics sector, making it a trusted partner to the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs as it delivers a highly-secured and modern passport for Thai citizens.

MARKET NEWS | VOLUME 7 – NO 10 | OCTOBER 2019

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News in Brief Slovakia’s eID Extended for Use Across EU The European Commission has approved the notification of the Slovak national electronic identification scheme at the highest level of security, extending it for use across all EU member states. This makes the country the 12th EU state to complete the notification process, joining Germany, Italy, Croatia, Estonia, Spain, Luxembourg, Belgium, Portugal, United Kingdom, the Czech Republic and the Netherlands.

The procedure began in April 2019, and the assessment came to its end this September. The evaluation was coordinated by Denmark, and experts from France, Germany, Italy, Slovenia and Hungary were actively involved. As part of the assessment, experts evaluated the procedures for receiving and issuing Slovakia’s electronic documents, their security features, cryptographic algorithms, and the log-on mechanism itself.

Slovakia's Interior Ministry also said it is updating the eGovernment system so that non-nationals will be able to use Slovak eServices as well.

Catalan Government Planning Digital ID Project Catalonia has announced plans for a decentralised digital identity project called IdentiCAT, with bidding for the project – expected to be completed by 2020 – beginning this month at €550,000.

The IdentiCAT project is part of the Ministry of Digital Policy and Public Administration's primary objectives to qualify and digitally empower Catalan citizens so they may carry out activities with full assurance and security in the digital society of the 21st century. It also comes as part of the autonomous region of Spain’s blockchain policy announced in June to boost use of the tech within public authorities and society.

The platform will be based on distributed ledger technology, with the Catalan government acting as the validator for the network. The government said it will not collect users’ personal data as part of the scheme.

4 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | NEWS IN BRIEF

The scheme is set to become the first digital identity at European level, which will be driven by the public sphere and managed by citizens themselves with the aim of becoming standard use.

The self-sovereign system, the government says, will use apps on mobile devices or computers to allow citizens to create and manage their own identities, with full legal effectiveness and privacy.

IdentiCAT will be developed to align with the EU’s rules on electronic identification and trust services for electronic transactions (eIDAS). As such, IdentiCAT users will be able to access online services and carry out electronic transactions in any EU member state.

The first stage in getting the system up and running will involve the development of the underlying technology, including tools for generating self-sovereign IDs, software that will validate and authenticate the IDs, and a way to technically integrate IdentiCAT with authentication systems currently used by the authorities within the Catalan Open Government Consortium.

Once development is complete, IdentiCAT will be deployed and distributed for use

by Catalan citizens, public organizations and companies.

France to Use Biometrics for ID Enrolment The French Interior Ministry has announced that it will deploy facial recognition for enrolment into its national digital identification program known as Alicem, making France the first European country to use face biometrics for a digital identity scheme on a mandatory basis.

The Ministry said the ID system won’t be used to keep tabs on residents. The system won’t be integrating the facial recognition biometric into citizens’ identity databases and the facial recognition data collected will be deleted when the enrolment process is over.

Alicem will be the only way for residents to create a legal digital ID and facial recognition will be its sole enabler. An ID will be created through a one-time enrolment that works by comparing a user’s photo in their biometric passport to a selfie video taken on the app that will capture expressions, movements and angles. The phone and the passport will communicate through their embedded chips However, the country’s data regulator has raised concerns, saying that the programme breaches the European rule of consent, and a privacy group is now challenging it in France’s highest administrative court.

Slovenia to Introduce Biometric ID Cards Mid-2021 Slovenia's government has announced that it is preparing to introduce biometric ID cards in August 2021, with the relevant legislative changes currently being drafted by the Interior Ministry.

The initiative is part of a European Union measure to enhance ID card security across member states by implementing a uniform identity card. In April, the European Parliament voted to introduce minimum common security standards for identity cards and residence documents throughout the EU, in order to make it more difficult for criminals to enter the region. ID cards will include security features aligned with passports, such as a contactless chip and the holder’s photograph and fingerprints for biometric identity verification.

The ID cards currently available in the country were first issued in June 1998.

The measure to introduce new biometric IDs will align Slovenia with the rest of EU members in terms of documents with superior security.

Citizens aged 12 or older will have to provide two fingerprints and a photograph when applying for the ID card, which will include a chip that stores the biometric data. The plan is to further include more features for electronic identification and an electronic signature for eCommerce.

Sierra Leone to Start Issuing Multi-Application ID Cards Sierra Leone’s National Civil Registration Authority (NCRA) has announced that the processing and issuance of the national ID cards is at an advanced stage, and the distribution of the new ID document will start by the end of the year.

The country's Ministry of Internal Affairs said that 5.2 million nationals, which forms about 78% of the total population, have now been enrolled in the database for the new cards.

The announcement follows a series of complaints NCRA was said to have received from citizens and other nationals over challenges they face to access financial services, to open or access their accounts to transact business. The Ministry added that as part of its effort to enhance financial services and inclusion of all residents, it is also looking to establish a biometric identity system in order to be able to identify residents.

Nepal to Suspend eID Card Distribution Nepali Congress lawmakers have demanded a halt to the distribution of the country's new national eID cards, saying that the contract for the National Identity Management Information System bypassed the mandatory competitive bidding process.

According to the lawmakers, by awarding the contract without an open bidding process, the government has circumvented the mandatory process for public tenders, which stipulates that public entities have to procure goods, services or construction work valued above Rs 1 million through an open competitive bidding process. A Rs 1.73 billion contract ($16 million) to upgrade and manage the national identity card project was signed in July between the Home Ministry and IDEMIA.

As well as creating a national database, the eID cards are to be used to provide citizens with a secure method of identity verification and to help facilitate the effective delivery of government services.

The card will also be linked to individual bank accounts with ATM functionality to withdraw cash, and is expected to be used in government elections.

The scheme includes procurement and customisation of software for the National Identity System, deployment of a hybrid database for a nationwide National Identity Management System, as well as the delivery of smartcards, and the installation and operation of eServices for the latter.

Ten years after its inception, the National ID Management Centre (NIDMC), under the aegis of the Ministry of Home Affairs, started issuing electronic identity cards in November last year. The pilot project, funded by the Asian Development Bank, had initially aimed to distribute 117,000 eID cards in Panchthar district and to civil servants serving at Singha Durbar.

The card holds biometric data of each eligible Nepali citizen with a unique number and is intended to replace the existing citizenship card. It will incorporate personal data including family name, given name, address, father’s and mother’s names, photo and four prints of both thumbs and two index fingers.

Nepal’s new national eID card (front and back)

Bermuda Developing Blockchain-Based IDs Blockchain platform Shyft Network has announced that it is developing digital IDs with the Bermuda government, with the aim of providing IDs that enterprises and citizens can operate for public services. The solution will provide an identity-based data exchange framework for residents, visitors, and companies in Bermuda.

The first phase of the project is now underway. This involves building the base layer infrastructure that will be managed on the Shyft Network protocol, so that smart contracts, interoperability, data portability, and compliance requirements can be enabled and made useable by businesses, citizens and government bodies.

‘Governments and enterprises will benefit from an efficient, robust and lowcost solution, whilst individuals benefit because it will be easy to use, provide better transparency and place them in control of their identity-related data,’ said Joseph Weinberg, Chairman at the Shyft Network.

Bermuda is an early mover in the race to develop a scalable, compliant digital identity programme. According to the government, once fully operational, eIDs will be used in conjunction with a compliance-based regulatory framework and paired with best-in-class technology solutions to create a digital identity authentication mechanism and bridge for the residents of Bermuda to permission the exchange of data attached to the eID.

Bangladesh Delays ePassport Launch Again Bangladesh’s Department of Immigration and Passports has pushed back the distribution of ePassports to December, the third delay since the original launch date, citing setbacks in project implementation and securing of funds.

The ePassport launch was scheduled to start in December last year, but was then pushed back to March and subsequently to July 2019 as the authorities were unable to begin the work within the stipulated time.

DIP said that arranging the funds for the project had delayed the work.

The ePassport will have an embedded electronic microprocessor chip containing biometric information to authenticate the identity of the bearer. According to DIP, the new travel document incorporates 38 types of security features, including a colour picture of the bearer on polycarbonate datapage.

Bangladesh and Germany signed an agreement in July last year following Dhaka’s decision to migrate to ePassports.

The €340 million contract between Veridos and Bangladesh’s Ministry of Home Affairs covers the entire value chain for the ePassports, from security paper through to eGates. The solution includes the set-up of a local passport factory. Implementation of the project started in July 2018 and is expected to continue until June 2028. A total of 30 million ePassports is planned to be produced, with 50 eGates set up at border control points.

The government initially planned to produce the first two million ePassports in Germany.

Later, it decided to print the first batch in Bangladesh.

Initially, the ePassports will be issued from Dhaka. The regional offices will continue to issue traditional passports until they can start issuing the ePassports. The process to install eGates has already begun at every airport and land port across the country.

With more than 160 million inhabitants, Bangladesh is the world’s eighth most populous country and will provide the highest output of passports with colour photos worldwide. According to the DIP, 10.7 million passports have been issued since April 2010.

Bangladesh’s new ePassport.

VOLUME 7 – NO 10 | OCTOBER 2019

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Company News Veridos Appoints New CEO Veridos has appointed Andreas Räschmeier as its new CEO. Andreas Räschmeier previously worked at the G+D group, where he held several senior and management positions.

Most recently, he served as Global Vice President of G+D's Currency Technology group company.

The previous CEO, Hans-Wolfgang Kunz, is retiring. He has been at the helm of the joint venture of G+D and Bundesdruckerei since its inception in 2015 and, under his leadership, the company has become one of the world’s leading suppliers of integrated identity solutions and products, used by governments and public authorities in more than 100 countries. Before that, Kunz, a long-time member of the G+D Management Board, developed the banknote processing and inspection systems segment.

‘With Andreas Räschmeier, we welcome an able successor from within our own ranks, who will continue the Veridos success story, said group CEO Ralf Wintergerst.

‘There is considerable demand the world over for ID solutions ‘made in Germany’, especially for large-scale government projects, and this is largely due to the efforts of Veridos and, in particular, HansWolfgang Kunz. We would like to thank him for his successful work, and we are certain that his successor, Andreas Räschmeier, will continue in this tradition,' added Stefan Hofschen, CEO of Bundesdruckerei.

Commenting on his appointment Räschmeier stated: ‘my principal aim in times of rapid growth is to lead Veridos with circumspection and stability towards the future.’

‘HID Global and the De La Rue international identity solutions business share the common goal of helping governments fulfil their eGovernment initiatives today and in the future by converging physical and digital identities to increase efficiency, security and flexibility,’ said Stefan Widing, President and CEO, HID Global. ‘The acquisition sets the stage for HID to leverage the decades-long relationships De La Rue has had as a prime citizen ID supplier providing HID’s innovative solutions to governments seeking to modernise.’

HID Global’s citizen identification solutions can be found in 60% of all governmentissued electronic identity projects around the world. De La Rue’s direct relationships with government entities/agencies around the world was undoubtedly a key attraction for HID, as well as enabling it to provide a broader suite of offerings that include mobile IDs, automated verification capabilities, and ePassports with advanced physical and electronic security features.

The addition of the De La Rue citizen ID business also extends HID’s capabilities to assemble secure ID documents and, says the company, will create new opportunities to apply its design excellence, data analysis services/consultancy, and proven software and systems – including civil registry and vital statistics (CRVS) – to HID’s citizen ID portfolio.

SPS Enters into Agreement for Paragon ID’s Inductive Coupling Technologies IN Groupe's subsidiary Smart Packaging Solutions (SPS) and PARAGON ID have announced that the companies have entered into an exclusive, worldwide patent licence agreement related to the latter’s copper wire embedded inductive coupling technologies.

In recent years SPS and PARAGON ID, through its subsidiary AMATECH, have each developed and patented inductive coupling technologies. These include inlays and antennas used by their respective customers in a variety of final products such as contactless dual interface cards and ePassports.

Andreas Räschmeier.

De La Rue Identity Solutions Sale Complete De La Rue plc has completed the sale of its International Identity Solutions business to HID Global for a cash consideration of £42 million on a cash-free, debt-free basis, and business will be merged with HID’s citizen identity solutions portfolio.

6 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | COMPANY NEWS

According to the agreement, SPS will have the right to use the technologies patented

by AMATECH, and notably the sole right to sub-license and assert the patent rights related to past and future deployed products on the market, particularly products based on wired antennas such as dual interface cards.

The parties believe that the deal will contribute to further spread the use of the patented technologies, and thereby create additional value for the parties and their customers.

Philippe Patrice, SPS President stated: ‘this agreement comes within the scope of our asserted global strategy of building and protecting our portfolio of technologies in the constantly growing contactless cards market, for the benefit of our clients and for the overall market itself.’

Clem Garvey, CEO at PARAGON ID added: ‘we are delighted to further develop our relationship with SPS and the IN GROUPE in signing this important agreement. SPS will be deploying this technology in both payment and eID markets, worldwide, faster and more efficiently than we might have done on our own, or with any other potential partner. This agreement will also allow us to concentrate our R&D energies and investments in further developing our world class IP and technologies for dual interface metal card products’.

CBNC Awarded Guyana ePassport and Border Management System Contract Guyana’s government has announced that it will be implementing an ePassport and Border Management System following a $12.4 million contract award for the procurement of the new system to Canadian Bank Note Company.

According to the government, the new ePassport system will allow authorities to secure passport related information electronically and for that information to go electronically to the Department of Citizenship, where passports are produced.

The project, which is funded by the government and will be implemented by the Department of Citizenship, will see Guyana being linked to an international system for border protection and security. The new passport will utilise technologies that will make the biographic and biometric data on it more secure and will be more difficult to duplicate or fraudulently produce.

CBN deployed a passport issuing and border control system for Guyana in 2008.

In 2012 Guyana extended the contract for an additional five years.

The current Guyana passport has a striking and colourful design with images of local flora, fauna, architecture, and natural wonders adorning the visa pages and the inside covers of the passport. With a population of just under 800,000, last year the country issued over 82,000 passports in total.

Uganda’s ID Project in Record Time Mühlbauer has announced that it has extended biometric identity coverage in Uganda at a record pace.

According to the Ugandan 2014 national census, only 8% of the country’s population had a birth certificate to prove their legal identity. In 2015, the Registration of Persons Act (ROPA), and the National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA) switched to a multi-sectoral approach to identification that was partly driven by the decision to use the national ID card as the unique identifier for the 2016 general elections.

Subsequently, Uganda’s government partnered with Mühlbauer to jointly realise the National Security Information System (NSIS) project and provide a functioning ID card and digital identity to its citizens.

Uganda’s new national ID card.

As part of the project, Mühlbauer provided the artwork design for the cards, the delivery of blanks and machines for the personalisation of the eID cards with stateof-the-art security features. The company also delivered 8,000 mobile enrolment and issuance units within just eight weeks of the contract signature. In addition, 1,000 mobile power supplies were delivered, 87 district servers for data collection were installed and a complete spare part and maintenance management system was set up.

The project also comprised the biometric voters’ registration of around 5 million Ugandan citizens by means of a sophisticated biometric system and the setup of a National Identification Register (NIR), a biometric electoral register for voter identification.

In the first round, around 16.5 million Ugandans were recorded in the NIR. The second round was targeted at about 10 million pupils, aged five and above, in primary and secondary schools. All registered persons have immediately received a registration certificate and a NIB certificate, as well as a biometric ID card from the age of 16.

Approximately 30 million Ugandans, representing around 75% of Uganda’s adult population, are now registered in the NIR. Around three-quarters of adults in Uganda now have a permanent national identification number backed by fingerprint biometrics, according to the announcement, enabling them to more easily access services from the government and private sector, both in person and online.

According to the World Bank Report published in late 2018, Uganda’s National ID project is now Africa’s fastest implemented and working identification document project. The report says that no other country on the African continent has issued their first or new national ID more quickly.

Ever since its independence in 1962, Uganda has experienced a rapid socioeconomic transformation. With the growth in electronic transactions and exchanges, digital identity offers Ugandans the modern means of identification required to have secure access to online services.

Liechtenstein to Launch New eID Liechtenstein's government has announced that it will migrate from a smartcard and username/passwordbased eID solution to a more secure and modern smartphone-based solution complying with eIDAS, aimed at providing users with a secure and easy to use digital identity.

MIA.

YOUNIQX Identity AG, a subsidiary of the Austrian State Printing House (OeSD), and California-based Nok Nok Labs, have won the contract to implement the My Identity App (MIA) system in Liechtenstein and provide a simple user-experience while offering a range of functionalities to the user, enterprises and governments.

YOUNIQX, which focuses on secure identity management solutions for public and private sector entities, and Nok Nok Labs, which provides next generation authentication solutions for cloud, mobile and IoT applications, have recently announced a new partnership aimed at developing a unique solution for securing identities.

MIA is designed to provide a secure electronic identity to users by combining traditional ID documents with a digital identity in a smartphone app that operates on any platform. With MIA, users can identify and authenticate themselves in both the physical and digital world with the assurance that security, privacy, data protection, usability and trust placed in the app have been considered in equal parts.

MIA has been built to work with FIDO standards and incorporates features and functionality provided by the Nok Nok™ S3 Authentication Suite. The platform is suitable for a variety of applications including identification in traffic checks, age verification, hotel check-ins, or when opening a bank account.

Liechtenstein's new eID system will be implemented from the European Trust Services GmbH (ETS) as a subsidiary of the Austrian State Printing House. As a European Economic Area (EEA) member state, Liechtenstein follows the Consultation Report on the adoption of the European eIDAS (electronic identification) regulation and the new solution is intended to implement eIDAS regulations in the country.

With Nok Nok, the YOUNIQX portfolio now includes FIDO-certified multi-factor authentication for both mobile and webbased applications. According to the company, the Nok Nok's S3 Authentication Suite, SDKs and SaaS offerings provide strong security and unparalleled customer experience by enabling users to take advantage of the latest biometric authentication technology already present on their devices. YOUNIQX uses production-proofed technologies and other open standards, such as OpenID Connect to enable a simple and secure integration into existing systems.

MARKET NEWS | VOLUME 7 – NO 10 | OCTOBER 2019

7

De La Rue Launches IDProtect De La Rue has launched DLR IDProtect™, a new advanced holographic laminate for passports based on advanced holographic imaging origination technology, providing new distinguishable effects, higher brightness and lower reflectivity.

Using a combination of both design and effects-based imaging, De La Rue has developed a direct-write holographic imaging platform, which enables new, distinguished effects to be generated.

DLR IDProtect incorporates features with 2D-3D parallax effect, Fresnel lens-based elements, 90° rotational switch effect, 3D stereogram with interlaced RGB colours and traditional rainbow hologram effects. The tilting of the hologram left and right causes several elements to move horizontally in opposing directions, creating a strong illusion of depth, whilst the true colour 3D stereogram can be seen to rotate when tilted.

DLR IDProtect™.

Several other elements change colour from orange to blue on tilting. Several areas on the laminate appear as a holographic white (achromatic), whilst others have no holographic replay. Rotation of the hologram by 90° causes the previously white areas to switch off, whilst the previous dark areas switch on to replay a holographic white.

The large flower in the centre of the hologram presents a highly iridescent, shimmering optical effect which, when tilted vertically, appears to expand outwards. The colour changes from the centre of the flower to the edge of the petals to accentuate the animation effect.

The laminate also incorporates several level 2 and 3 features for assisted and forensic authentication.

Events

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Malta Launches New ePassport

DHS to Streamline Real ID Process The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is exploring the possibility of using online applications for the switch to Real IDs, with under 12 months to go before the deadline of 1 October, 2020.

Inner pages of the new Maltese ePassport.

The Maltese government has launched an upgraded ePassport incorporating cutting-edge technology, with the distribution of diplomatic and alien travel documents to begin first and ordinary passports to follow.

According to the government, although the Maltese passport is highly secure and conforms to the highest international standards, the new travel document integrates additional security features which will further prevent the counterfeiting of the document.

Amongst the features, biographic data will be laser engraved on a polycarbonate card which will be incorporated in the new passport. Apart from this, the new travel document is printed on a highly sensitive secure paper, which includes advanced security features and techniques using UV and visible fibres, high quality cylinder mould watermarks and security thread. The passport also boasts biometric features and an embedded chip, which are used to verify the person’s identity.

The inner pages of the new document depict imagery of renowned Maltese landmarks and cultural heritage, including those of the Ċittadella in Gozo and the Manoel Theatre. The intricate imagery, combined with a highly sophisticated layer of security features, is printed in secure ink that has been primarily designed to secure government-issued documents.

The gradual introduction of the new passport will take place over a number of years. The new travel document will be issued on application for a new passport or upon renewal. Existing passports in circulation will remain valid until their expiry date. Upon renewal, the new passport will be issued for no additional charge.

Citizenship Parliamentary Secretary Julia Farrugia Portelli said the new ePassport combines travel with culture. According to Portelli, personal details will be safely captured on the polycarbonate biodata page, which will make it extremely difficult to forge or tamper with the document without leaving signs of attack.

Continued on page 2 >

www.securedocumentnews.com

The DHS has published a request for comments on technologies that could streamline the process by which states and residents obtain IDs that are compliant with the new regulations, including the possibility of allowing states to move more of the application process online. According to the report, the DHS is ‘interested in concepts that reduce application burden, processing time, and administrative workload, and that effectively ensure security, protect privacy, and manage risk of fraud.’

The REAL ID Act, passed by Congress in 2005, prohibits federal agencies from accepting for official purposes a state issued driver’s license or identification card, unless the state is meeting the minimum security requirements of the Act and implementing its regulations.

The REAL ID Act requires applicants for a REAL ID-compliant license or card to present certain identity, and citizenship or lawful status, documentation, and for states to verify and retain copies of that information.

Under the terms of the Real ID Act, on 1 October, 2020, anyone without IDs that are required by the legislation will be barred from flying. According to a recent study commissioned by the US Travel Association, millions could be caught unprepared. 72% of Americans in the study said that they either do not have a Real ID-compliant driver’s license or are unsure if they do. 99 million Americans could as a result be unable to fly by the time of the deadline, according to the study.

Inside this Issue 1 Malta Launches New ePassport

1 DHS to Streamline Real ID Process

2 Frontex to Become

Strengthened EU Border Force

Frontex to Become Strengthened EU Border Force Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, has announced that it has gained new responsibilities and tools to more effectively support EU member states and Schengen associated countries in managing their external borders.

3 Hong Kong Celebrates at ID Awards in Yokohama

4 News in Brief 5 Accessibility – ‘Talking’

for Flexible Decentralised Digital Credentials

The new European Border and Coast Guard regulation coming into force next month paves the way for the creation of Europe’s first uniformed service. Frontex will count on 10,000 border and coast guard officers to assist national authorities with border control and migration management.

‘With our own standing corps and own equipment, Frontex will be a daily partner for national authorities to design sustainable border management capacities rather than simply responding in a crisis management mode. Our operational aim is to have wellfunctioning external borders ensuring trust in our European Area of Freedom, Security and Justice,’ said Frontex Executive Director Fabrice Leggeri.

Malta Launches New ePassport (Continued)

Malta’s passport issuing authority – Identity Malta Agency – has reiterated its commitment towards making its services more accessible. Following a series of meetings with the Commission for the Rights of Persons with Disability (CRPD) and the Foundation for ICT Accessibility (FITA), Identity Malta said it intends to facilitate the use of the Maltese passport for the visually impaired, which will result in higher independence.

The first batch of diplomatic and alien passports is now being distributed. The issuance of the ordinary passports is expected to follow shortly.

Frontex border guards will be a crucial part in the effort to better integrate the European Border and Coast Guard, which consists of national border and coast guard authorities and Frontex.

Frontex will help to strengthen Europe’s ability to respond at its borders by sharing relevant information and regular risk analyses. The agency will help predict challenges facing EU countries at their borders and support national authorities to respond adequately.

Frontex maintains a European overview of border control and migration management thanks to its 24/7 monitoring of the situation at the borders and beyond. The agency will be able to provide a variety of operational services to EU and Schengen countries, from border surveillance and border control to return, including supporting the reintegration of returnees in non-EU countries. The agency will also continue to strengthen its role in fighting cross-border crime, including in the maritime domain.

It will also play a bigger role in the management of the growing flows of legitimate travellers across the EU’s

2 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | MARKET NEWS

Frontex says it will plan the EU’s response to challenges at the external borders together with national authorities – rather than only reacting to crises – and will implement the Europe's border (IBM) strategy at the European and national levels.

The agency will develop integrated planning and support European countries in preparing national capability development plans. These will allow national authorities and Frontex to strengthen their ability to protect Europe’s borders.

Identity Cards

6 Company News 7 Technology News 8 SICPA Wins US Contract

external borders, hosting the future central unit of the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) and supporting member states with the deployment of the Entry-Exit-System.

The new regulation includes: Developing and strengthening EU border management capacities through the development of integrated planning (capability development planning, contingency planning, operational planning); Becoming more active outside the EU, with the ability to conduct operations in non-EU countries that do not neighbour the EU; Upgrading management system to ensure that Frontex remains fully accountable and transparent as it continues to grow; Continuing to ensure well-functioning border controls for EU citizens and travellers from other countries; Continuing to build resilience at Europe’s borders thanks to its annual assessments; Continuing to maintain safe and secure external borders by providing national authorities with operational support on land, sea and air; Contributing to the fight against cross border crime by providing experts and training; Assisting national authorities in effective returns of those who are not eligible to remain in the EU in all stages of the process. Under the new regulation, Frontex will also focus on post-arrival/ post-return assistance; Continuing to be the eyes and ears of law enforcement at the external borders with constant situation monitoring, risk analyses and information exchange on what is happening at EU borders and beyond; Under the new regulation, the agency will have 40 fundamental rights monitors in its operations.

Hong Kong Celebrates at ID Awards in Yokohama Hong Kong’s new ePassport and smart identity card have been recognised as best in class at a prestigious industry awards ceremony.

To streamline procedures, self-service kiosks have been introduced to allow people to take photos and collect the passports later.

Reconnaissance, the organisers of High Security Printing™ Asia, revealed the 2019 winner of the Regional ID Document of the Year awards at a special presentation during the conference in Yokohama, Japan on 26 November 2019. The award recognises outstanding achievement and technical sophistication of a document and promotes the best in system infrastructure and implementation of a government passport or national identity card scheme.

According to Hong Kong Immigration Department, the existing passport first launched in 2007 already incorporates advanced security features, but the new passport has made counterfeiting the travel document more difficult.

Two awards – one in the best new ePassport and the other one in the best new eID card category – went to the Hong Kong Immigration Department.

1st anniversary for smart card

The new ePassport, boasting state-of-theart security upgrades and creative ultraviolet designs, was unveiled in January 2019. It features the Tsing Ma Bridge, the world’s 11th longest span suspension bridge connecting the islands of Tsing Yi and Ma Wan, and the regional flag as background print, whilst the datapage features the national flag above the city, next to the Golden Bauhinia Square – the national emblem of Hong Kong.

The biodata page, now made of polycarbonate and carrying micro-printing, contains a laser-engraved portrait photo of the holder under a transparent layer – a technology also adopted for the new Hong Kong smart ID card.

The booklet incorporates new-generation tactile relief features, including new fullcolour UV printing. Visa pages are in various flower prints, and a special feature brings out the city’s skyline on each page – in a different colour theme – when placed under UV light.

A so-called fanning effect on the passport’s open side displays the word ‘Hong Kong’ in Chinese characters and the letters ‘HK’ when page edges are viewed at an angle. When the edges are seen from the opposite direction, a picture of the Tsing Ma Bridge appears.

Last year the department issued 701,467 passports, and 11.5 million since 1997.

In 2018, authorities found a total of 449 forged travel documents, whilst in 2017 the number has reached 515.

About 8.8 million Hong Kong residents are having their ID cards replaced with the new documents. The replacement is being carried out in phases, with law enforcement and government officials having received the new card first and residents born in 1985 and 1986 getting their cards after that. They were the first group to receive the existing cards during the last replacement exercise in 2003. According to Hong Kong Immigration Department, their cards are currently the most vulnerable. The replacement programme is expected to be completed in four years.

The new Hong Kong smart identity card was launched on November 26, 2018 – just a few months before the new ePassport was introduced – with the award, interestingly enough, coinciding with its first anniversary.

The next-generation card features enhanced security, built-in RFID technology and higher-resolution photographs. The card is pink, light blue and light green in colour, with a photo of the card holder on the left and a small laser engraved image of the portrait on the right.

The card features a new see-through window bearing the card number in the top right-hand corner. An image of the Hong Kong skyline appears when the back of the card is examined under ultraviolet light. The RFID transmission technology has also improved security and data retrieval speeds.

The awards were presented to Tin Chee Chan, Assistant Director of the Personal Documentation Branch of the Immigration Department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) of the People’s Republic of China by Martyn White, Chairman of Reconnaissance International.

The card supports wireless technology and has expanded storage capacity for higher-resolution photos to support facial recognition technology. This is intended to provide a platform for alternative biometric authentication on top of fingerprint verification. Fingerprint templates have been upgraded for more secure and accurate identity verification.

Hong Kong Immigration Department has set up nine replacement centres across the city, equipped with self-service registration and collection kiosks. At the kiosk, an applicant only needs to insert his or her existing ID card, verify two fingerprints and then input or verify the application data. The machine will then print out a form so the applicant can move on to taking a photo.

The whole process takes no more than 30 minutes. It takes about 10 working days to receive the new card.

Hong Kong Immigration Department’s Tin Chee Chan celebrating the awards at HSP Asia in Yokohama.

Hong Kong’s new ePassport pages under UV light.

ID AWARDS | VOLUME 7 – NO 11 | NOVEMBER 2019

3

News in Brief Nepal Cancels ePassport Tender The Nepali government has cancelled an ePassport tender process worth around Rs 4 billion ($34 million), citing conflict of interests between the Passport Department and the proposed Security Printing Centre under the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology.

A dispute had surfaced between the two government bodies after the Department of Passports (DoP) invited tender bids for the ePassport, a job which the Security Printing Center (SPC) is planning to undertake itself.

Executive Director of the SPC, Bikal Paudel, had lobbied to foil the DoP's tender process. The DoP earlier had invited representatives of the SPC when it was in the process of finalising technical specifications, estimated costs and other related components of the tender process.

The DoP had invited tenders for printing 4 million copies of passport booklets carrying 32 pages and 1 million passport booklets with 64 pages. The SPC had been exerting pressure on the DoP to invite tender for only 3 million passports, arguing that SPC's own printing facility to print passport booklets would be ready by the time the 3 million passports are issued.

According to the government, the move to cancel the fresh bidding process could delay the prospect of introducing the ePassport any time soon in the country.

Montenegro to Launch Next Generation ID Documents Montenegro’s government has announced it will launch the next generation of Montenegro passports, ID cards, driver’s licenses and resident permits next month.

It signed a contract with Mühlbauer ID Services to supply the system in August.

In addition to the delivery of blank documents, the project’s scope includes the supply of equipment for the biometric enrolment of citizens, as well as systems for data management and state-of-the art document personalisation. The project further comprises a central system for the issuance of documents and the set-up of a Public Key Infrastructure (PKI).

Mühlbauer said the company will provide all necessary support to ensure a seamless implementation of the project.

Fiji to Introduce National ID In an effort to provide more transparency, the Fijian government has announced it will introduce a national ID card in the next two years which will be the only formal identification recognised around the country.

4 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | NEWS IN BRIEF

The initiative is expected to ease doing business in the country and will give banks more confidence in dealing with customers.

The government is working with experts from Singapore on developing the system, and will work with relevant stakeholders to ensure the ID system contains the proper verification of individuals.

Commenting on the plans, Fiji's Minister for Economy, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, said: ‘every single Fijian will have a national identification card that will be the only source of ID number that you will know, where details of all the other identification cards will be at the back end of the national ID card. We want to make things easier for people where you don't have to remember multiple numbers or carry multiple cards with the introduction of the single ID card.’

Colorado Launches mDL The US state of Colorado has added driver’s licenses to the myColorado mobile app – which can be used to register to vote, renew a driver’s license and prove identity at any state agency.

Colorado became one of the first US states to trial a digital driver’s license, with more than 35 states having launched pilot programmes over the last three years.

Colorado decided to build its digital ID system on its own because it wanted more than an ID app, according to the state’s Office of Information Technology.

The new Colorado digital driver’s license includes a holographic image that rotates as the phone rotates, the ability to press the ID and enlarge the text and a barcode that can be scanned.

Colorado’s mDL.

To enrol, users must take a photo of their face that is matched to their driver’s license photo on record. Users also will need to use multifactor authentication to use the app or rely on the phone’s built-in technology.

Belarus Delays Introduction of Biometric Documents Belarus has postponed, introduction of biometric documents, citing technological difficulties.

The issuance of the new documents, including ID cards and passports, was previously expected to start in 2019 but was subsequently delayed. According to the country’s Ministry of Internal Affairs, the plans have been pushed back because of the need to integrate information systems.

The Ministry had then expected to launch the ID cards and biometric passports from the onset of the next year. However, it now says it will take time to interconnect all information systems to which a citizen will have access, as currently the databases are operated on different platforms.

The country's first data personalisation centre, which will collect information from all the citizenship and migration offices in a real-time mode, has now been set up.

This information will be the basis for new identity documents.

The ePassports and eID cards have been developed by RUE Cryptotech, a state company overseen by the Belarus Ministry of Finance, in collaboration with the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ministry of Communications and Informatisation.

Over 30 organisations are involved in the transition, with the Ministry of Internal Affairs overseeing the project and coordinating its implementation.

The cards will be made of polycarbonate and will incorporate a number of state-ofthe-art features to protect them against counterfeiting. Technology adopted in these cards will also be utilised to make other identity papers, such as ID cards for foreign nationals and stateless persons.

The ePassport, meanwhile, will include a complete redesign of the inside pages to incorporate the latest developments in secure technologies, and for the first time for Belarus passports, will switch to polycarbonate for the data page.

The new ePassports and eID cards will meet all international requirements for travel and identity documents and will be the first nationwide implementation of biometric documents in Belarus.

The Denver Police Department and Colorado State Patrol are monitoring the digital ID programme. It is expected law enforcement agencies will adopt the technology by the end of 2020.

Belarus’ New eID card.

Accessibility – ‘Talking’ Identity Cards

By Achim Hildebrandt, Former Head of Passports and ID Cards, Federal Ministry of the Interior, Germany Regulation (EU) 2019/1157 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 on strengthening the security of identity cards of Union citizens and of residence documents issued to Union citizens and their family members exercising their right to free movement is now in force.

There are various possible solutions for implementation. One possibility is to integrate the required information into the chips of identity cards. This could be carried out during issuance, especially when the data is loaded onto the chip, in which case retrofitting should also be possible.

The regulation contains security and production standards that are legally binding for the EU member states. This means that not only EU visas, residence permits, passports, driving licences, but also identity cards are now to be subjected to EU regulations and secured according to uniform standards. Identity cards remain national.

It should also be possible to read out the information using the document holder’s mobile phone. This can read out the MRZ and hence the chip or the personal data of the passport holders, who are able to read the MRZ and thus read the chip, or the personal data that the holder has consented to.

That being said, however, the term European identity card is appropriate. The identity cards will be given an EU logo, based on a uniform yet flexible high-security concept that allows national adaptation.

These cards will be valid as ID documents throughout Europe. ‘European identity cards’ legitimise EU citizens as such and serve as travel documents equivalent to passports across the block. Just like passports, they also contain two biometric features, ie. face and finger. The ‘EU identity cards’ protect their holders and serve to secure the European internal market.

So much for the principle.

Accessibility

In the recitals, the regulation contains a reference to accessibility and userfriendliness. It reads: ‘This Regulation respects the obligations set out in the Charter and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Therefore, Member States are encouraged to work with the Commission to integrate additional features that render identity cards more accessible and user-friendly to people with disabilities, such as visually impaired persons. Member States are to explore the use of solutions, such as mobile registration devices, for the issuance of identity cards to persons incapable of visiting the authorities responsible for issuing identity cards.’

This passage is not part of formal legal section. However, if we read it according to the letter and the spirit of the regulation, further conclusions can be drawn.

On the one hand, the passage on accessibility and user-friendliness has a mandate character. In this respect, it has a challenging character. Secondly, identity cards can be understood to include other ID documents, especially passports and driving licences, in as far as these documents serve as proof of ID. The task formulated as a recital can therefore be widely interpreted.

The talking passport or identity card would work much like the applications used today in the package insert of medicines, or like the applications used at museums where explanations can be listened to on the visitor’s mobile phone. No internet connection is required for this.

In technical terms, this is a two-dimensional, coloured data code that can be scanned and decoded directly in combination with an app (available free of charge) and a smartphone (IOS or Android). Unlike other QR codes, which are basically a link to a website, this solution contains all the information in the code itself and therefore does not require an internet connection.

Another possible solution is available on the market. In this case, a link to an mp3 file is stored in a rather small QR code containing an audio clip. The audio clip consists of the spoken details of the information printed on the identity card. In this case, the information would be, for example, ‘this identity card is issued in the name of... It is valid until...’.

In other words, a talking identity card. The card is heard rather than read. A mobile phone scans the QR code, loads the audio chip from the server into the mobile phone and plays back the content via the voice output of the mobile phone.

One option with a similar effect would be to apply Braille code to the identity card, which a visually impaired person could ‘read’ with his or her trained fingers; this would also decode the link to the audio clip. The link would have to be typed in or spoken into the mobile phone in order to then listen to the audio clip. The advantage of this approach is that no space would be needed to apply Braille code to the identity card. The very small Braille nubs have virtually no falsification effect on the printed characters. Both solutions require access to the internet.

Colour speech code

Internet-independent solutions are also conceivable. For example, the information could be integrated into a special coloured and larger QR CODE. The data is then read out again with the personal mobile phone.

In other words, the QR code is read with the mobile phone and the text can then be listened to.

This kind of solution has been tried and tested and is available on the market. As a result, text that is difficult or impossible to read because it is very small now becomes audible.

Colour speech code.

Another internet-independent solution would be to store an audio clip (eg. an mp3 file) in a free memory area of the chip on the identity card. Using an app specially developed for this purpose, an NFCenabled mobile phone could read the audio clip and make it audible. For access to the chip, the operating systems for the chip in the identity card would have to be extended by adding the clip-read function in addition to the security protocols previously used.

Conclusion

After reading the spirit and letter of the recitals, it is apparent that the new EU regulation on identity cards contains a very clear political mandate to make ID documents accessible. We are talking about the technical methods that can be implemented. If we assume that the aforementioned regulation represents the will of the EU member states, the European Parliament and the Commission, then the time has come for action. It goes without saying that it will not be as easy as outlined above, but we have to make a start. The idea that good things take time should not apply here.

VIEWPOINT | VOLUME 7 – NO 11 | NOVEMBER 2019

5

Company News Mühlbauer Implements Mozambique Border and Visa System

Veridos Awarded Contract to Modernise Cyprus Passport System

Mühlbauer has announced that the company has launched Mozambique’s new visa and border management system with a full range of applications for immigration processes at all of the country’s border control points.

Cyprus’ Civil Registry and Migration Department has commissioned Veridos to modernise its nationwide system for biometric data collection, centralised personalisation, and issuance of electronic passports, ID cards and residence permits, and to replace critical hardware and software components of the system that have reached the end of their lifecycle with state-of-the-art new components.

The new border management software is based on a user-friendly, responsive usability concept: all relevant data are displayed on only one page so that the border officer can determine possible discrepancies at a glance – without distracting page turning, scrolling or timeconsuming searching for the data.

Moreover, by means of a document reader, the new border management software enables full document checks of every passenger’s travel document to be performed.

In order to reliably determine the authenticity of a travel document’s security features, the software accesses a database with the relevant security features for most of the ICAO-compliant travel documents on the fly and matches the document’s security data with the data stored.

Automatic stop lists and entry/exit checks with overstay handling reliably support the border officers in the detection of fraud or suspects. The system automatically alerts the authorities to any known undesirables attempting to enter or exit Mozambique, enabling appropriate action to be taken promptly.

In addition to the provision of an integrated border and visa management system, Mühlbauer is in charge of the delivery, distribution, installation and ramp-up of a bleeding-edge system for the issuance of civil identification documents and travel documents within and outside Mozambique. The project scope also comprises extensive consultancy, technical assistance and training of the customer’s organisation and workforce. Mühlbauer is also responsible for subsequent installation in 45 Mozambican embassies all over the world.

According to the company, this marks an ideal starting point for the secure and efficient processing of Mozambican citizens and foreign passengers who enter and leave the country every day. The overall goal is to contribute towards boosting legitimate entry and exit to Mozambique, preventing illegal immigration or identity fraud and, at the same time, tightening security measures at border crossings and striking the right balance between open yet fully secure borders.

6 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | COMPANY NEWS

As part of the project, the documents will also be adapted to current EU regulations and equipped with new security features.

It is planned that the Cypriot authorities will issue the new generation of documents from spring 2020 onwards.

Veridos will support the system infrastructure with maintenance and services, and will supply Cyprus with electronic passports, ID cards and residence permit cards for the next three to five years.

The system for biometric data collection, central personalisation and issuance of electronic documents in Cyprus was implemented by German state printer Bundesdruckerei in 2010. At the inception of Veridos, the Bundesdruckerei's international eGovernment business was transferred to Veridos. The follow-up contract for system maintenance and modernisation has now been concluded between Cyprus and Veridos.

It covers the provision of D-ID technology to customers across Japan and Asia, with the aim of enhancing privacy protection for customers in industry verticals such as smart cities, tourism and travel, as well as healthcare and finance.

D-ID allows organisations to enhance security and ensure the privacy of their customers and employees with state-ofthe-art technology that protects sensitive biometric information in facial images and videos. With advanced image processing and deep learning techniques, D-ID’s DeIdentification solutions can resynthesise any given photo in a way that enables humans to recognise it, but prevents facial recognition engines from identifying it with biometric scanning tools.

D-ID also offers Smart Anonymisation tools to replace facial images with AI-generated faces in videos and still images, allowing organisations to apply advanced analytics and monetise video data, while still meeting strict privacy regulations.

‘We are proud to partner with an innovation-leader like Toppan, to offer the most advanced privacy protection solutions to the Japanese market. The demand for solutions to protect identities from the misuse of facial recognition is growing rapidly around the world as more and more businesses wish to enhance privacy protection and avoid the threat aspects of automated face recognition,’ said Gil Perry, co-founder and CEO of D-ID.

‘We are very pleased that the long and successful cooperation between the Civil Registry and Migration Department and Bundesdruckerei is now being continued

by Veridos,’ said Andreas Räschmeier, CEO of Veridos. ‘We will be modernising the infrastructure in an extremely short period of less than six months. A smooth transition with the continuous issuance of secure and up-to-date documents to the citizens and legal residents of Cyprus will be guaranteed at all times’.

Built around D-ID’s solutions, Toppan’s new service prevents the identification of personal information by AI facial recognition technology. As a result, personal privacy can be protected and secure data retention and utilisation can be realised in companies. Toppan intends to deploy the service in its businesses related to smart cities, travel and tourism, human resources, healthcare, finance, and to develop new services focused on personal privacy protection through combination with its own diverse solutions.

Current Cypriot ePassport introduced in 2010.

‘With our joint offering, Toppan and D-ID will allow companies to improve their security and ensure that the privacy of data subjects, customers and employees, is properly protected,’ added Minoru Saito, Senior General Manager of Toppan’s Digital Security business.

Toppan Printing and D-ID Announce Partnership Israel-based supplier of identity authentication solutions D-ID has announced a strategic partnership with Toppan Printing.

Technology News Veridos Launches SwipeUp ID Veridos has launched SwipeUp ID, an innovative solution that uses the capacitive displays of smartphones to verify identity documents.

SwipeUP ID.

A hidden metallic element serves as a basis: the newly-developed electronic technology is printed on the document and contains an identity-specific coding. Once the SwipeUp ID app has been opened, users can simply place the document on the smartphone's capacitive display and swipe up with one finger, which will activate the new feature.

This induces a unique signal that is analysed by the app and can then confirm or reject the validity of the document within a few seconds. According to Veridos, this makes SwipeUp ID a smart-phone based second level security feature unlike any other.

The feature was developed by Veridos in collaboration with the start-up company Prismade Labs. Both companies have agreed on an exclusive development partnership. The aim is to fully integrate the Prismade technology into the identity documents and system solutions of Veridos.

The new process is particularly suitable for identity documents that do not contain any electronics or chips, such as some identity cards or driver’s licences. The security feature is applied cost-effectively and environmentally friendly by a regular printing process during the card production.

It also contains country-specific codes, so that only the authorities of the country that has issued the document can read the information.

Apple Files Mobile ID Patents Apple has published two patents entitled ‘Identity Credential Verification Techniques’, revealing that it is is exploring ways and means of storing government ID securely on mobile devices, The patents cover the concept of replacing physical government identification, ie. a driving license or passport, with a digital version. The most interesting part seems to be the ability to transmit the information to government agencies such as law enforcement by the user.

According to Apple, the patents regard, among other things, improving data security with respect to data collection, verification, and authentication techniques associated with obtaining and transmitting identity information. The creation of an identity, says the document, could be done by a government agency such as the US Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV).

By way of example, the DMV may provision a credential that includes a person's driver's license information, it says. In some embodiments, the credential may be digitally signed by using a private key of the DMV such that the identity credential may be verified using a public key associated with the DMV. Once provisioned, a user may receive the identity credential electronically (eg. via an app operating on the user's device).

Subsequently, when the user desires to provide some portion of their identity information, the identity credential may be utilised to provide the information to another user device.

The information that this patent could cover includes, but is not limited to, passport, vehicle registration, and immigrant/ non-immigrant visa information, and insurance documents.

Laxton Introduces Chameleon 8 Slap+ Laxton Group has launched the Chameleon 8 Slap+, an addition to the Chameleon Biometrics family of products, in the form factor of an integrated, multi-modal biometric tablet.

The Chameleon 8 Slap+ incorporates the Jenetric Livetouch Quattro Compact and is said to be the most compact and lowest weight FAP60 scanner on the market. It is FBI Appendix F certified for both ID Flats and ten-print fingerprint acquisitions.

According to Laxton, the Chameleon 8 Slap+ remains true to the fundamentals of the Chameleon brand, being highly configurable and the most adaptable integrated device in the world. As with the other devices in the Chameleon 8 range, the Slap+ has also been released with three off-the-shelf configurations. A necessary addition to the Chameleon 8 range is the inclusion of an FAP60 option.

Chameleon multi-modal biometric devices have been aligned to the European EES (European Entry Exit System), specifically the Chameleon 8 Slap and Slap+ options.

Both are designed for mobile border control and mobile verification, leveraging the fingerprint readers, high specification cameras and reading Passport/ID cards with the integrated MRZ and NFC readers.

Laxton’s Chameleon Range.

Infineon Launches Secora ID Infineon has introduced a new ID security solution for national eID schemes, dubbed SECORA™ ID, aimed at accelerating the execution of electronic ID document projects.

According to Infineon, the SECORA ID platform enables security printers and card manufacturers to progress further on their path towards digitalisation of governmental applications.

The plug-and-play SECORA ID combines Infineon’s security chip with software to ease the integration into eID documents.

At the same time, SECORA ID can be customised easily and efficiently according to the specific requirements of national eID schemes, as well as further applications.

These can range from electronic health cards and eDriver licenses up to multi-application solutions combining identification, payment and public transport ticketing.

SECORA ID supports contact-based and contactless as well as dual interface solutions, enabling a smooth transformation from today’s installed contact-based infrastructure to contactless solutions for digital identification.

The solution is based on latest standards such as Global Platform v2.3.1 and Java Card standard v3.0.5 and supports stateof-the-art encryption mechanisms. Its non-volatile memory space of up to 450 kByte allows to store personal data as well as biometric and visa information.

The operating system is targeted to be certified according to Common Criteria (CC) EAL 6+ and EMVCo; the applets are targeted to be certified according to Common Criteria EAL5+. All SECORA ID solutions will be available in widely used smart card packages, including CoM (Coilon-Module) packaging.

Furthermore, comprehensive applet choices for major eID applications are supported by the Infineon Applet Collection, the Applet Collection by Masktech and the ePasslet Suite by cv cryptovision.

Delivery for SECORA ID is scheduled for early 2020.

TECHNOLOGY NEWS | VOLUME 7 – NO 11 | NOVEMBER 2019

7

SICPA Wins US Contract for Flexible Decentralised Digital Credentials The US Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate has awarded $181,392 to SICPA Product Security to develop a solution for credential issuers to manage and verify digital credentials that are the digital equivalent to physical credentials, without reengineering their current processes and system.

DHS operational components – such as US Customs and Border Protection, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), and US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) – issue, validate and verify eligibility requirements, licenses and certifications for travel, citizenship, and immigration status, employment eligibility, and supply chain security.

SICPA's Phase 1 award project – ‘Decentralised Digital Identity for Online and Offline Verification’ – will build a flexible, credential-based identity solution that includes the enrolment, creation, issuance and management of secure digital credentials through interoperable, open standards, which will seamlessly co-exist with current processes and systems while enabling offline credentials validation.

‘The ability of credential issuers to transition from paper-based to digital credentials without reengineering current processes and systems is a critical aspect of incorporating innovative technologies with current systems,’ said Anil John, S&T’s Silicon Valley Innovation Program (SVIP) Technical Director. ‘SICPA’s work will allow physical and digital credentials to co-exist

while enabling broad interoperability based on emerging World Wide Web Consortium standards such as decentralised identifiers and verifiable credentials.’

The Phase 1 award was made under S&T’s SVIP Other Transaction Solicitation Preventing Forgery & Counterfeiting of Certificates and Licenses, which is seeking out blockchain and distributed ledger technology solutions to fulfil a common need across DHS missions.

SVIP is one of S&T’s programs and tools to fund innovation and work with private sector partners to advance homeland security solutions. Companies participating in SVIP are eligible for up to $800,000 of nondilutive funding over four phases to develop and adapt commercial technologies for homeland security use cases.

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VOLUME 7 – NO 12 / DECEMBER 2019

Huge Rise in Digital ID Demand According to the report, digital experience expectations are very high. 73% of consumers say that when they are trying to create an account or process a transaction on a modern digital platform (ie. online lending, payment, eCommerce and marketplace site etc.), the process should happen instantaneously. Furthermore, an overwhelming majority (92%) expect a fast, frictionless experience while also getting one that is as trustworthy and secure as possible.

A new report published by a USbased market research consultancy Vanson Bourne reveals that a majority of consumers demand trust, security, and data privacy, and also expect their digital transactions to be fast and frictionless.

‘Infinite Want: Consumers Demand Speed and Security in the Digital Experience’ surveyed more than 7,000 consumers across North America and Europe asking them what they wanted in their digital experiences, how they respond when their needs are not met, and if they have personally experienced fraud.

‘The clear message of this survey is that consumers aren’t willing to compromise on speed, convenience or security when it comes to digital transactions,’ said Beth Shulkin, Vice President for Global Marketing at Ekata, a US-based supplier of digital ID verification solutions, who commissioned the study. ‘This puts pressure on businesses to build customer trust with a smooth, yet highly secure experience from the very first interaction. Companies that can deliver on all fronts will earn the loyalty of today’s consumers.’

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Three-quarters do not have the patience for sub-par digital experiences due to alternative options available in the marketplace. Two-thirds have abandoned their account opening or transaction on at least one occasion due to friction, including the process taking too long. Consequently, says the report, businesses face increasing pressure to get the customer experience right, every time.

Consumers who fear future fraudulent attacks believe protection is the business’ responsibility. Nearly half of consumers in North America (nearly 40% overall) have personally had their identity stolen or been the victim of fraud, while a large majority (90%) are concerned that they will be the subject of fraud in the future. More than three in five (61%) of consumers believe that responsibility for avoiding fraud lies with the companies that have access to their personal data. If consumers do experience fraud on a company’s platform, 91% say they likely won’t use that company again in the future, while 86% say they will tell others about their fraudulent experience.

Pressure is on for businesses to build customer trust with a smooth yet highly secure experience from the very first interaction, concludes the report.

Freja eID Becomes Sweden's National ID Freja eID – a mobile eID in the form of an app designed to facilitate how private individuals prove their identity to each other online and in physical contexts – has become the ID method for eServices in Sweden.

Freja eID will be supported by Bolagsverket (the Swedish Companies Registration Office and Verksamt.se.

The latter is run jointly by Bolagsverket, Arbetsförmedlingen (the Swedish Public Employment Service), Skatteverket (the Swedish Tax Agency) and Tillväxtverket (the Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth) as part of the cooperation between the agencies.

Verksamt.se offers companies aggregated information from more than 45 authorities and the opportunity to carry out tasks that they need to do with these.

Freja eID allows users to have a secure digital ID document available in their phone. According to Verisec, who developed the solution, the idea of the new feature is to make everyone feel safer in meeting with other people and to facilitate how private individuals prove their identity to each other (see ID&SDN September 2019). This is done with an ID function that works just as well in the digital as the physical world.

With the new feature, the user shares their ID photo, name and surname, as well as their age, by showing their phone screen or by letting someone scan the QR code in their device. The user can also prove his or her identity by sending a temporary link with their personal data to someone via the internet and the recipient does not need to be a Freja eID user.

Inside this Issue 1 Huge Rise in Digital ID Demand

1 Freja eID Becomes

Sweden's National ID

2 Malaysia Launches Digital ID Study

2 Greece to Relaunch ID Card Tender

3 ICAO Launches RFI on

New and Emerging Technologies for MRTDs

3 Mastercard Trials Digital ID

4 5 6 7 8

News in Brief Digital Identity in Crisis Company News Technology News Onfido and ForgeRock Announce Partnership

Malaysia Launches Digital ID Study Malaysia has launched a comprehensive study to establish a user-centric national digital identity framework.

The National Digital ID Study Task Force will oversee the 30-week study, which will recommend the implementation model of digital ID in the country.

‘We are taking a consultative and collaborative approach to the study, particularly by working together with relevant stakeholders in getting their views on potential use – cases for the national digital ID platform. This is important to ensure user centricity in designing the framework for Malaysians,’ said Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) Chairman, Al-Ishsal.

The study’s primary focus includes local contextual analysis, implementation strategy, operating model, technology and enabling policies as well as related legislation.

The recommendations of the task force will also take into consideration aspects such as existing ID programmes, while leveraging on their strengths and opportunities, the existing legal framework, security, privacy and ethics.

‘Today, as technology forms an integral part of our lives, the need for a safe, secure and protected national digital ID platform has

become both an essential and an attractive proposition. A national digital ID serves as a secure and trusted digital credential as well as a platform for authentication that can improve convenience, promote inclusivity, reduce cost of access to services, and enhance service delivery to Malaysians where online transactions are concerned.

We expect the final report of the study to be ready by 30 June 2020 and we will put forward our recommendations to the Cabinet for further action,’ said Al-Ishsal.

Malaysia’s Minister of Communications and Multimedia, Gobind Singh Deo, mooted the idea to establish a national digital ID in October 2018. Subsequently, in May 2019, Cabinet approval was obtained to begin a comprehensive study of the national digital ID framework. The mandate was given to MCMC to recommend the workable model with further steps for the implementation of the national digital ID. The National Digital ID is an effort by the government to enable Malaysians to embrace the rise of digital services. It is expected to be an advanced method of authenticating a user’s identity online, where it is safe, secure and protected, and will not be a substitute for the National Registration Identity Card (NRIC), nor will it be compulsory for everyone.

Greece to Relaunch ID Card Tender The Hellenic Police (ELAS) is to relaunch a tender for the creation of an electronic information system for security documents, which will be used to issue new ID cards and to upgrade current passports, driving licenses and other documents. This system is intended to implement an EU decision first taken in November 2018.

Initially launched in April last year, Greece’s Public Order and Citizen Protection Ministry called off the tender two months later, citing the need to include new specifications such as taxpayer, national health service, voter registration and social security numbers, in addition to identification information.

According to the Ministry, the aim is for the citizen card to simplify and facilitate all communication and transactions with public, national and international authorities.

To date, Greece continues to issue nonmachine-readable paper-based identity cards with very little security.

2 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | MARKET NEWS

In April 2019, EU lawmakers approved new rules establishing a uniform identity card format across all member states.

Aiming to boost border safety and prevent terrorists and criminals from entering the European Union with forged documents, the EU has given member states two years to issue new biometric ID cards, the features of which will be aligned with those of passports and will include a secure contactless chip with the holder’s photo and fingerprints.

Greece has repeatedly been called on to replace the current ID cards with new biometric credit card-sized IDs. Two years ago, the US added pressure on Greece to improve the security of its identity cards, but the country has still failed to launch the new and more secure form of identification document, citing costs.

The project – a 15-year contract to include the creation of an integrated management system for 11 public documents, including ID cards, passports, driving licenses, health cards, and social security cards – was initially budgeted at €515 million.

The winning bidder will have 18 months to design, develop, implement and operate the system, and create the required infrastructure and train staff.

The new IDs will have shared security features, such as a machine-readable zone for use in airports, ports, and railway station scanners, and a contactless chip containing biometric data such as photo and fingerprints.

Greece is one of the last countries in Europe that still issues paper-based nonICAO compliant national ID documents without a machine-readable zone.

Greece's current paper-based national ID card.

ICAO Launches RFI on New and Emerging Technologies for MRTDs ICAO’s New Technologies Working Group (NTWG) has launched a Request for Information (RFI) on new and emerging technologies relevant to machine-readable travel documents (MRTD) and electronic machinereadable travel documents (eMRTD).

The 2019-2020 RFI seeks submissions of information on new technologies, application of systems, innovations or research available that link to the following themes: Strengthen eMRTDs – identifying solutions that will increase the security of the passport book, construction methods and materials used, improvements in cryptographic protection and its usability in manual or automated border control; Leverage existing eMRTD capabilities – advancements in authentication practices, biometric capabilities, their use in or outside of the travel continuum, their use in smart devices eg. eSIM and improvements to border control use; Future forms of eMRTD – how holders’ data is gathered, stored, protected and transmitted, how quantum computer considerations and mitigation measure can be applied, as well as how facial recognition on the move can help facilitation of passenger movements through the entire travel continuum, from ticketing, check-in, boarding, inflight services, disembarking, transit, border control, quarantine services and identity credential use after journey completion.

With the entire travel journey being the main focus of the RFI, ICAO says it is interested to hear responses that cover either a single, multiple or all parts of passenger facilitation from checkin, border departure control, aircraft boarding/disembark/transit, border controls and customs clearance. The NTWG also welcomes responses that address other information areas that might fit into the above themes.

Submissions will be reviewed against a variety of qualitative and quantitative factors, based on the themes identified.

Generally, this will include aspects such as cost, innovation, and compatibility with current and future document issuance and border control processes.

Other factors such as dependent technologies, reliability, accuracy and speed may also be considered by the selection panel.

Interested parties must be able to substantiate any claims related to performance of the technology proposed or information provided. The NTWG panel will give particular consideration to the submissions on how they meet ICAO goals of facilitation, security, and global interoperability.

Responding parties must also present their technologies in the context of: ICAO Document 9303 7th edition (2015); ICAO Technical Reports that supplements Doc 9303; Standards & Recommended Practices (SARPS) for adjudication, issuance and lifecycle management of MRTDs; and how they apply to the United Nations Convention of International Aviation 15th edition (2017), and in particular Annex 9 Facilitation.

The RFI is placed by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade as part of its participation in the ICAO TAG/TRIP (Technical Advisory Group on Traveller Identification Programme) and as a contracting state of ICAO. ICAO TAG/TRIP is responsible for the development of specifications for travel documents with the goal of global interoperability. In addition, the TAG/TRIP provides advice to ICAO on technology issues related to the issuance and use of machine-readable travel documents.

The TAG/TRIP, through its NTWG, is responsible for research, analysis, standards and reporting on new technologies available today, or in the near future, for use in MRTDs. The NTWG also has a broad interest in technologies available for application in traveller identification to effectively facilitate passengers and to uniquely identify individuals in the travel continuum.

Responses will be accepted until midnight, UTC on 27 February 2020.

Submissions received after this time will not be included for review.

Mastercard Trials Digital ID Mastercard is carrying out the first pilot of a digital identity programme designed to let people prove who they are both in the digital and the physical world. The pilot is taking place in Australia through two separate efforts with Australia Post and Deakin University.

‘Our increasingly digital life – the way we transact and interact – has challenged our traditional notions of identity, trust and privacy. We need a new model,’ said Ajay Bhalla, President of Cyber and Intelligence for Mastercard. ‘We believe that this starts with a commitment to the responsible handling of personal information, giving consumers control over which data is used and how it is used to verify their identity.’

The pilot program will test a new way for people to prove their identity without having to carry multiple documents. Instead, the model allows the data to sit with its rightful owner – the user. It will activate a distributed model that blends information stored on an individual’s mobile device and verified by additional reference points, such as an individual’s bank or participating government agencies, eliminating the need for a centralised identity database.

The initial phase of the pilot with Deakin University featured student volunteers testing an identity verification process for student registration and digital exams at the Burwood and Geelong campuses in Victoria.

‘We’re delighted to partner with Mastercard in this first trial to test concepts that can one day deliver intelligent, future-focused solutions ready to respond to a digital world’s needs,’ said William Confalonieri, Chief Digital Officer for Deakin University. ‘The pilot aligns with our institution’s digital-first strategy to improve the user experience and we look forward to the concept moving into other trial environments.’

To support its identity efforts, Mastercard has entered into a separate partnership with Australia Post to integrate the agency’s existing Digital iD solution and expand the ability for Australians to identify themselves easily when accessing services.

‘Australia Post is delighted to participate in this pilot, which will help raise awareness about digital identity in Australia and provide our Digital iD users access to a larger variety of uses,’ said Regis Bauchiere, General Manager, Identity Products and Services for Australia Post. ‘Complementing our participation in the Trusted Digital Identity Framework, it also positions Digital iD as the only identity provider offering our communities access to both government and private sector services.’

Following these initial efforts, additional partnerships and pilots are planned throughout 2020.

VOLUME 7 – NO 12 | DECEMBER 2019

3

News in Brief Malawi to Launch ePassports Following the introduction of eVisas, Malawi is to roll out electronic passports from January 2020.

The Department of Immigration and Citizenship Services has announced that it will fully digitalise its operation by October 2020, starting with the introduction of the electronic travel documents, which will replace traditional machinereadable passports.

The new electronic passports will enhance security with a chip to store face, fingerprints, iris and bio data.

With the current setup, all passport applications and payments are processed using an analogue system, which requires that all documents and material be checked by several sub-departments and officials before being finalised.

The broader migration process has been split into two separate projects: eVisa and ePermit. The Immigration Department has already started rolling out some permit applications online.

Another difference is the polycarbonate data page incorporating laser engraving and Multiple Laser Image (MIL) as added security against forgery.

The upgraded passport was introduced in response to a government directive to reposition and improve the passport issuance regime.

Nigeria’s government has recently cancelled all ePassport printing contracts abroad, saying that it will now be the sole responsibility of the Nigerian Security Printing & Minting Company (NSPMC).

According to the new directive, all existing contracts for the printing of passports and other documents will be automatically transferred to NSPMC once they become due for renewal. The move is expected to create employment, reduce the demand for foreign exchange and provide greater security in terms of passport production and supply.

Ghana to Complete National ID Card Registration

Several other government agencies, including local law enforcement, the Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA) and Financial Intelligence Unit, will leverage the digital system – specifically in scrutinising applicants for work permits, visitors and business licenses.

Ghana's government has said that by the end of the first quarter of next year, the National Identification Card process will be completed for persons above 15 years old across the country. The process of issuing the National Identification Card, known as the ‘Ghana Card’, to those below the age of 15 will continue in the meantime.

Malawi’s Immigration procured a $35 million contract in 2018 to upgrade the Passport Issuance System (PIS) and introduce the ePassport. Two Trees Investments, a joint venture with Belgian firm ZETES, has secured the contract.

Earlier this year the National Identification Authority (NIA) extended mass registration for the Ghana Card in the Upper East, Upper West, Bono, Ahafo and Bono East regions.

Nigeria Launches Enhanced ePassport As part of plans to improve the availability of passports to Nigerians, the country’s Immigration Service has unveiled the country’s new enhanced ePassport integrating polycarbonate datapage and Supplemental Access Control for protecting data on the chip.

The new ePassport comes in three standard variants – the 32 page with five years validity, the 64 page with five years validity, and the 64 page with 10 years validity.

A significant difference between the new version and the existing one is the Supplemented Access Control (SAC), which is the latest set of security features on ePassports. According to the government, this will further strengthen the security of the travel document.

4 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | NEWS IN BRIEF

The NIA says it will soon operate registration centres at offices of institutions such as the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) and Driver Vehicle and Licensing Authority (DVLA).

Permanent NIA offices will also be established at regional, municipal and district levels by March 2020 to afford all Ghanaians who were not registered during the mass registration exercise the opportunity to do so.

Ghana unveiled the new national ID card nearly two years ago. According to the NIA, the initiative is designed to provide Ghanaians with a modern robust national identification system and a smart ID card that will meet people’s modern aspirations and carry Ghana as a forward looking state into the future.

The new ID card will replace other forms of accepted national identification documents in the country. It will also be linked to individuals’ bank accounts to enhance modern payment systems. With a 128 kilobyte capacity, the Ghana Card will also enable other stakeholders to run their applications on the card.

Ghana’s new national eID card.

Thailand to Introduce Blockchain-Based eVisa The Thai government has announced that it will soon apply blockchain to its Electronic Visa On Arrival (eVOA) system in order to speed up and protect the digital visa application process used by around 5 million visitors from 20 countries.

The upcoming system is a joint effort by Australian travel company ShareRing and Gateway Services, an entity that owns the license to process eVOA for Thailand.

According to the announcement, Thailand will initially roll out the blockchain-enabled eVOA service with a focus on visitors from China and India. The new feature is intended to streamline the process of applying for Thailand’s visa, as its existing Visa On Arrival process is done at airports or land entry points in Thailand. The process is paper-based and requires travellers to bring a number of documents such as printed copies of their airline tickets, accommodation confirmation and photos.

Blockchain technology will be used to improve the security and speed of digital visa applications. As the digitised application process is associated with major risks and fraud, ShareRing has been working with Gateway Services in order to improve security, speed and the quality of this process.

Specifically, ShareRing will provide Gateway Services with its self-sovereign identity technology OneID, which enables optical character recognition (OCR) and protects data by encrypting all the information into a single file on blockchain. According to ShareRing, such a combination of blockchain tech and OCR reduces the amount of time required for eVOA partners to manually verify all the information.

Additionally, ShareRing said it is eyeing further global expansion of its blockchainbased visa application system after successfully completing its initial pilots.

Digital Identity in Crisis According to a study published by the professional services companies Deloitte & Touche, growing consumer expectations and the breakdown of traditional walls and emerging technologies have given rise to a digital identity crisis.

This means that technology, cybersecurity, legal and business leaders are all stakeholders in effective identity management, each with their own challenges and ambitions related to user experience, system availability, resilience, risk management and consumer engagement.

Digital identity lags on investment and priority: cybersecurity teams must deal with legacy IT environments and a resistance to migrate to cloud-first architectures. In the survey, 35.4% of poll respondents recognised upgrading legacy systems as a challenge to organisations employing identity programmes. Nearly 18% of poll respondents selected lack of funding and sponsorship as a challenge.

More than ever before, identity management is at the centre of cybersecurity, regulatory compliance and consumer trust, and many organisations are struggling to define digital identity both internally for the enterprise and externally for consumers.

‘In a digital economy, identity is a point of trust, perimeter of security and an index of customer satisfaction,’ said David Mapgaonkar, Deloitte’s Principal for the cyber technology, media and telecom sectors. ‘Organisations should think about challenges related to both consumer and enterprise identity management to understand what they can do to create better outcomes. But it's not easy – it requires managing relationships with many stakeholders and alignment on technology and funding.’

Findings from a Deloitte poll are consistent with the recently released report ‘Rediscovering Your Identity’, in which Deloitte shares some top emerging trends and challenges shaping the evolution and management of digital identity and discusses some challenges for organisations to enable transformation.

According to Deloitte, rising global data privacy regulations pose compliance challenges: identity, data privacy and regulatory compliance are increasingly overlapping. Cybersecurity leaders are burdened with developing a more comprehensive view of their consumers to comply with legal and audit-related mandates such as the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and the recommendations of the National Institute of Standards and Technology Cybersecurity Framework.

Either way, many organisations haven't built modern systems that are APIbased, orchestrated and enable easy integration with apps. And investment into new systems and structures can be significant. Without an organisation-wide understanding of the identity imperative, sponsorship at an executive level can be hard to attain. Deloitte’s 2019 Future of Cyber Survey found that 95% of C-suite level executives commit 20% or less of their security budgets to support identity solutions.

Companies are reluctant to outsource identity management: many cybersecurity leaders are concerned about integration, flexibility and access to specialised support with outsourcing their identity management to third parties. 14.4% of poll respondents selected lack of talent and a skills deficit as a challenge for identity. With a cyber talent gap only growing, identity-as-a-service (IDaaS) may be a viable option for many organisations to empower innovation efforts and drive digital transformation.

Responsibility and ownership are often distributed among multiple executives, teams (marketing, sales, cybersecurity, etc.) and IT systems, making coordination of largescale projects challenging. The poll shows that 14.4% of respondents selected lack of executive prioritisation and alignment as a challenge to impair identity from impacting digital transformation. Digital identity projects tend to take time and that can be a challenge for organisations that may need to show immediate progress and broader return on investment. Many stakeholders increase complexity and timelines, and these critical programmes are not getting implemented fast or well enough.

‘An integrated digital identity program will provide organisations operational efficiencies and improve user experiences by powering digital transformation. In addition to the fact that, regardless of what business you are in, we all need to know

that what we share is protected, what we access is secure, and who we allow into our systems are supposed to be there,’ said Mike Wyatt, Deloitte’s Principal for cyber identity solutions. ‘An integrated approach can help prevent a future digital identity crisis from surfacing by building consumer trust and enabling both privacy and security.’

Digital identity is both a use case for blockchain and an enabler that allows each of the other assets for blockchain integration to exist. Other top use cases for digital identity, for example in government, include land and corporate registrations, voting, supply chain traceability and taxation.

The operating environment for digital identity will likely become increasingly complex – with greater business expectations to meet, new technologies to integrate, multiple data privacy regulations to adhere to, and increasing numbers of people and devices to manage. Every company will have a different set of digital identity challenges and a unique approach to identity management.

Deloitte suggests that a digital identity program should be: Safe – ensuring security, privacy and compliance Flexible – working across multiple platforms as well as working with people, systems and devices Agile – adapting quickly to end-user needs, IT requirements and new applications Scalable – addressing the shifting requirements of the business, such as adding new users from an acquisition or managing an influx of customers Open – accommodating many types of users, including employees, consumers, partners and contractors Private – giving users control over their information and an understanding of how it is used and how they can access it Frictionless – providing a seamless and convenient experience for both users and cybersecurity administrators Resilient – overcoming potential service disruptions, technology failures, or cyber threats — whether on-premise or in the cloud.

In a digital economy, every outcome depends on digital identity as a point of trust, a perimeter of security, an index of relationship management and a means of service personalisation, concludes the study. Companies that harness digital identity should be better positioned to reap the benefits of security and long-term customer value.

EDITORIAL | VOLUME 7 – NO 12 | DECEMBER 2019

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Company News IN Groupe Acquires SURYS

Metropolitan is Sri Lanka’s leading workplace solutions provider. It has evolved into a diversified group supporting and implementing large projects involving advanced technologies in areas such as infrastructure, educational services and BPO operations.

IN Groupe has finalised the acquisition of SURYS to form a leading player in France and worldwide, operating across the full spectrum of the identity market, as well as the track and trace and banking businesses, from security components to digital and biometric solutions.

SURYS, headquartered in Bussy-SaintGeorges near Paris, has two plants in France and the US, and several R&D units in France, Germany and the US. It also has access to the world's largest database of identity documents, through its subsidiary Keesing based in the Netherlands. Its solutions for travel and identity documents have been adopted by over 130 countries.

SURYS’s expertise in the authentication and protection of the variable data in documents, and in image analysis, are intended to complement IN Groupe’s overall offering, particularly in the area of secure components.

IN Groupe say its strategic ambition is to create a centre dedicated to secure electronic and optical components which secure identities and fiduciary transactions.

The components centre will be driven by IN Groupe subsidiary SPS, which supplies electronic components for chipped cards.

On a broader level, says the company, the acquisition gives France access to an internationally renowned player and world leader in the market for passport security components, and will consolidate the French identity industry for the benefit of French identity papers and documents.

Mühlbauer to Supply Guatemala's New eID Cards Guatemala's National Registry of Persons (RENAP) has awarded Mühlbauer a contract for the production and delivery of pre-personalised national identification documents (DPI) equipped with a contactbased chip.

Mühlbauer will provide 2 million polycarbonate ID-1 smart cards. According to the international standard ISO 7810: 2003, all cards are equipped with a contact-based chip with an EEPROM of 80 KB. The multiapplication card is endowed with a Match on Card applet which enables secure fingerprint authentication, as well as with PKI and an ICAO ID and travel applet.

Mühlbauer will provide all necessary support for a seamless personalisation process on all available printers at the RENAP headquarters in Guatemala City.

The cards will be used for the Guatemala national ID and resident card.

6 ID & SECURE DOCUMENT NEWS | COMPANY NEWS

Guatemala’s national eID card.

IDEMIA to Supply Morocco’s eIDs IDEMIA has signed a strategic contract with Morocco’s National Security Government Department (DGSN) to supply the country’s latest national electronic ID cards and introduce a secured digital identity online services platform.

According to DGSN, the deal will enable government agencies and private online service providers to tap into the new digital identity system to provide Moroccans with user-friendly, fast, and secure access that safeguards the privacy of their personal data on the eID cards.

‘Digital is a game changer for the world and what people demand. From now on, everything’s got to be faster, easier and most of all, work anywhere on a mobile device in a secured environment,’ explains IDEMIA Executive Vice President for Public Security and Identity, Phillipe Barreau.

‘The public at large have already taken on board this new way of doing things and Morocco’s government services are following this path. But eGovernment services will only come about if people’s physical and digital identity is fully reliable and safeguarded. Biometric technology nowadays delivers watertight security and flexibility as expected. We are proud to be able to provide Morocco with our expertise and technologies.’

Iris and Metropolitan Announce Partnership IRIS Corp has entered into a strategic partnership agreement with Metropolitan Office Private Ltd to collaborate and explore business opportunities in ePassport, automated border control (ABC) and attendance management solutions (AMS) in Sri Lanka.

Under the collaboration, the two companies will secure projects in all three areas, providing information technology supplies and services for the projects.

The partnership aims to leverage Metropolitan’s extensive business network to promote IRIS’ competitive solutions in Sri Lanka. The collaboration also entails Metropolitan’s deployment and testing of IRIS’ AMS solution in Sri Lanka, with a nationwide launch planned for early 2020.

Thales to Deliver Queensland’s Digital DL Thales has signed a contract to partner with Queensland’s Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR) in Australia to design, develop and deliver the state’s first digital driving licence app.

Thales has worked closely with TMR and its customers to co-design a fully integrated app-based solution that is able to manage multiple digital credentials from various sources. The solution, which integrates a backend platform with managed services, builds upon Gemalto’s next generation Digital ID Platform and Wallet technology, a smartphone-based home for all of the owner's digital identity credentials.

The all-in-one Digital Licence solution utilises a privacy enhanced app that acts as a secure digital vault to store a wide range of digitalised official documents, starting with the owner’s driving licence, photo identification card, marine licence and vehicle registration. The solution delivers ease of access via a smartphone, while ensuring the owner has complete control over their personal data and the freedom to decide exactly what information to share, with whom, and when.

The app will also provide Queenslanders with a secure gateway to access TMR’s online services, supporting the opportunity to expand to other state overnment online services in the future.

The solution will be piloted in the Fraser Coast in early 2020, before extending to other regional locations and becoming available to over 3.7 million Queenslanders state-wide.

A first for Australia, Queensland’s digital DL will meet the International ISO-Compliant Mobile Driving Licence Standard, allowing the state’s digital driving licences to be recognised and used in over 18 countries world-wide including the US, UK and France.

Technology News Matica Launches LCP9660 Matica Technologies has released the LCP9660 Desktop Laser Colour Personalisation System combined with the recently launched high resolution retransfer card printer MC660.

After the 600dpi dye-sublimation printing process with the MC660, the card will pass to the in-line MC-LX module, a compact desktop laser engraver based on highperformance Master Oscillator Power Amplifier (MOPA) technology.

According to Matica, the combination of high resolution colour retransfer printing and laser engraved information in the inner body of the card reaches the highest levels of visual security and anti-counterfeiting. This, says the company, is thanks to the Matica Secure Protected Image (MSPI), where the ID picture is laser engraved in the inner layer of the card – literally, underneath the colour image, printed beforehand to render any attempt to manipulate, counterfeit or forge impossible.

The MC-LX is the third generation of Matica’s desktop laser modules with a 10-watt fiber laser source. The module includes ‘TRIPODE’, a new frictionless card transportation system, providing precise and scratch-free transport which further allows other visual security elements to be added to the card, such as Multiple Laser Images (MLI) and Changeable Laser Images (CLI) without needing to buy extra hardware. The integrated flip-over and vertical adjustment for ‘out-of-focus’ effects reduce the number of hardware parts, making the activation of options virtually installation-free.

The MC-LX can also be added to other MC Series modules, such as the recently launched MC-L laminator module for enhanced security and durability. The MC-L lamination module is offered as an option for the LCP9660.

ArcBlock Releases New ID Wallet ArcBlock, a blockchain platform for production-ready decentralised applications and enterprise blockchains, has released a new version of their decentralised identity wallet.

With this release, ArcBlock says it is delivering a new decentralised identity wallet experience that is dynamic and supports users' daily life.

According to the company, ABT Wallet moves beyond fundamental static interactions, making it easy for anyone to take back control of their digital identity and day-to-day activities with nothing more than a mobile device.

The new version, ABT Wallet 2.0, now includes a new user-experience for managing accounts and digital properties, is easier to connect and interact with applications, services, and connections and provides a streamlined way to check activities and transactions.

After downloading the wallet, signing up and launching the wallet app, the user lands on the new home screen, which provides one-click access to everything happening in the digital day, including personal wallet cards, profiles, connections, and activities.

‘Today, most people are using mobile devices throughout their day, and the new ABT Wallet is designed to extend the capabilities of their phone by allowing them to use these next-generation blockchain services in a way that is already familiar.

Every interaction is designed to be useful and user-friendly. Moreover, we've added new capabilities that allow users to manage their personal and professional digital properties with ease.’

Regula Launches MOHyster Regula 7708 Regula has released a new device designed for examination of magnetic security features in high security documents – the magneto-optical hysterisigraph MOHyster Regula 7708.

ABT Wallet 2.0.

With the new features, users can now use nothing more than a mobile device to interact and manage their daily digital experiences with the on-going confidence that their data is secure. ABT Wallet has been developed to ensure that, whether it's logging into a dashboard for work or buying event tickets, everything can be done in a few actions with the user identity data known only to the users themselves. The solution allows users to log in and access services at their place of employment, create and use websites and applications with user-defined profiles, request, share and send documents, or make a payment at their local coffee shop.

The ABT Wallet 2.0 is built using an industry-standard decentralised identity protocol – DID:ABT – which allows users to create decentralised identities in the wallet that are under their control and independent from any centralised registry, identity provider or certificate authority.

ArcBlock has also integrated decentralised identity with its interoperable blockchain network. Any identity created on the network is automatically given a DID, helping organisations to build and deliver services using decentralised identity flexibility. ArcBlock is an active member of the Decentralised Identity Foundation and W3C CCG working groups, which are actively working to establish decentralised identity standards.

‘For the first time, users can experience the benefits of decentralised identity and blockchain technologies, but in a way that makes sense,’ said Robert Mao, ArcBlock’s CEO.

MOHyster Regula 7708.

The key feature of the solution is the facility to measure and evaluate magnetic hysteresis characteristics of security features in high security documents under different magnetisation conditions, such as saturation field intensity, saturation magnetic induction, residual magnetic induction, coercive force and hysteresis loss.

Based on coercive force measurements, the device allows classifying magnetic security features in documents by the type of ferromagnetic materials they contain (ie.

Soft, SemiHard, LoCo Hard / HiCo Hard).

Hysterisigraph performs magnetic field tomography at various distances from an examined object surface. This unique function allows 3D distribution of the magnetic field and its integral assessment to be studied.

MOHyster Regula 7708 is specifically designed to be used in applied research, particularly for the development of new and improved document security features with magnetic properties. The solution is also ideal for monitoring the quality of security features during the production of documents. Finally, MOHyster can be used for extensive research on magnetic printing elements performed by forensic experts.

TECHNOLOGY NEWS | VOLUME 7 – NO 12 | DECEMBER 2019

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Onfido and ForgeRock Announce Partnership Onfido, developer of identity verification platform of the same name, and ForgeRock, a provider of digital identity services, have announced a partnership to integrate Onfido’s combined Digital Registration, Identity Verification and Authentication solutions into ForgeRock’s Consumer Identity and Access Management (CIAM) platform.

Onfido’s solution enables document onboarding which verifies new users from their first interaction, with 98.7% of fraudulent applications detected. To achieve this, Onfido uses a combination of human analysts and machine learning to check for data consistency across the ID, performing image analysis, and detecting anomalies in fonts.

customers,’ said Ben Goodman, Senior Vice President of Global Corporate and Business Development at ForgeRock.

‘Offering customers a strong validated identity at the start of the customer journey not only reduces their fraud exposure, but drives increased revenue from simplified onboarding experiences and more personalised interactions.’

Together the services are intended to reduce friction for customer registration and onboarding, creating a single identity profile that can be leveraged across an organisation’s entire digital estate. This Digital Access as a Service (DAaaS) can be used for authentication at many different points in the digital customer journey.

The service covers over 4,500 ID document types across 195 countries, detecting anomalies automatically, while using human experts to verify outliers. For high-risk transactions or ongoing authentication, a self-service step-up verification and authentication is available that requests a customer selfie which is then matched against the document used to register.

‘Whether you’re a bank, online retailer, insurance broker, mortgage company or marketplace, being able to build trust and provide the best onboarding experience possible for customers, while reducing fraud exposure, is a vital step to growth,’ added Husayn Kassai, CEO and CoFounder at Onfido. ‘We’re pleased to partner with ForgeRock to bring the highest level of security assurance to its identity platform.’

‘Disparate identity systems spread across many applications and services are proving challenging for many of our

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