Different Ways to Digital ID – Identity News Digest

Welcome to FindBiometrics’ digest of identity industry news. Here’s what you need to know about the world of digital identity and biometrics today:

Investigative Tech On the Table After Dublin Riots

Ireland’s Taoiseach – the prime minister and head of government – is suggesting that new investigative technologies may be used to track down individuals involved in violent riots in Dublin this week. Speaking in Dublin Castle, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said his government is “bringing through legislation at the moment around the use of CCTV,” noting that the gardaí police force had collected “a huge amount of CCTV evidence” from the city center. “It’s important that we’re able to use modern technologies to go through that and go through it quickly,” he said. The effort follows considerable controversy earlier this year over proposals to bring face-scanning body cameras to the gardaí.

UK Cops Plan Wide Rollout of Mobile Facial Recognition in 2024

The United Kingdom’s National Police Chief’s Council (NPCC) says a mobile-based facial recognition tool will be rolled out for police across the country in 2024. The tool, dubbed “Operator-Initiated Facial Recognition” or “OIFR”, uses NEC’s NeoFace facial recognition technology to scan a suspect’s face and search for matches in the linked Police National Database. News of a 50-officer pilot of the system by South Wales Police came to light earlier this month.

Tesla Patent Details Driver Recognition and Safety System

Tesla has filed a patent for a multi-sensor system that would recognize a vehicle’s driver and watch for signs of incapacitation. The patent details how such a system could use facial recognition to recognize and greet the driver, and automatically adjust the vehicle’s personalization settings to the driver’s preferences. Sensors would also detect the positions of a vehicle’s occupants and adjust things like air conditioning and music to optimal levels. Sensors would also monitor the body position of the driver to detect potential incapacitation, engaging an emergency system in such an event.

Apple Shutters Touch ID Manufacturing Systems: Report

Apple has reportedly shut down most of the manufacturing equipment used to make the chips used in its Touch ID fingerprint scanning system, according to a purported insider. In reporting the news, MacRumors cites an “integrated circuit expert” on Weibo who has “a track record for sharing information about Apple’s plans.” The Weibo user says that the only Touch ID manufacturing systems still in use are producing components for the iPhone SE, which uses fingerprint recognition instead of facial recognition for user authentication. The claims have prompted speculation that the next iPhone SE will embrace Apple’s Face ID system.

Another NEXT Partner Moves Toward Aadhaar L1 Certification

Another of NEXT Biometrics’ India-based partners is on track to get Aadhaar L1 certification in the first quarter of 2024. The prediction arrives alongside an initial NOK 1.5 million order of NEXT’s FAP 20 fingerprint sensors, part of a larger NOK 65 million agreement announced in July. NEXT hasn’t named the Indian OEM in question, but another of its partners, Access Computech Pvt. Ltd. (ACPL), delivered a business breakthrough earlier this year through its own achievement of L1 certification, a security standard that will be required for devices used in the Aadhaar national ID program starting in June of 2024.

Onfido Reflects On Five Years of Fraud

Following up on its recently published 2024 Identity Fraud Report, Onfido has revealed findings from a study of how fraud has changed in the five years since its first such report in 2019. As explained by Onfido’s Fraud Specialist & Expert Document Examiner, Simon Horswell, in that time fraud has gone from something resembling a Monday-to-Friday job for fraudsters to a threat that persists 24/7, seven days a week. Deepfakes, meanwhile, have emerged as a key new means of attack, having been virtually unknown in 2019. More insights can be found on Onfido’s blog.

Swiss Government Proposes Free, State-Run Mobile ID

Switzerland’s executive government has proposed legislation to establish a digital ID that will be entirely state run, after what the Federal Council described as an exhaustive consultation process. The move comes three years after a referendum on a previously proposed “e-ID Act” that was rejected by voters, with polling suggesting that Swiss citizens were concerned about data security and the idea of involving private companies in the scheme. The newly proposed e-ID will be voluntary and free of charge, and smartphone-based, with an enrolment system that will compare end user’s selfie photos to images of their physical ID. Authorities plan to launch it in 2026.

Indonesian Legislation Would Require Digital ID Enrolment

Indonesian authorities, in contrast, have announced legislation that will require citizens to enroll in a digital ID system, which will be issued by an “Electronic Certification Provider” that has already been selected by the government. Like the Swiss, however, the Indonesian government is also stressing its prioritization of data security. “We have created a so-called Digital ID, that will circulate in cyberspace in accordance with the Personal Data Protection Law,” said Semuel Abrijani Pangerapan, the Director-General of Application & Informatics in the Ministry of Communication & Informatics. “In transactions, only we and the parties with whom we transact will know our data,” he added.

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November 24, 2023 – by Alex Perala