Federal ID cards need more thought | CNET News.com
We definitely have quite a bit to worry about from mandatory federal ID cards that have technology that can read them up to 30 feet away. With identity theft as rampant as it is NOW, shouldn't the Feds take a second, third and a fourth look at this idea and the technology behind it before implementation of such a risky scheme?
As usual, EPIC has the facts. Read on.
Federal ID cards need more thought | CNET News.com: "In response to the Perspectives column written by Phil Libin, 'Technology alarmism in spades': We are writing in response to Phil Libin's CNET News.com column on May 17, 2005, 'Technology alarmism in spades.' In it, Mr. Libin criticized the Electronic Privacy Information Center's April 2005 Spotlight on Surveillance report, 'Homeland Security ID Card Is Not So Secure,' which is an evaluation of the Department of Homeland Security's Access Card (DAC). Mr. Libin also posted a longer criticism of the report on his blog, 'Vastly Important Notes.' Mr. Libin's column and blog entry contain several errors, and EPIC takes this opportunity to refute his criticisms. Mr. Libin's most significant error is his assertion that the DAC's ISO 14443 technology is not Radio Frequency Identification (RFID). However, technology experts, the industry and CNET News.com itself, label ISO 14443 as RFID. RFID is a generic category that encompasses many types of chips: Some are passive (they are dormant until read at close range); some are active (they are always ready to be read at a greater distance); some offer plaintext or encrypted data in addition to authentication mechanisms (ISO 14443 A&B). What they have in common is that they use radio waves to request and transmit data, as opposed to contact cards, which require physical contact with a reader to receive and transmit information."