UK passport pilot ready for the off

However, from the end of the 2003-2004 season,Bell’s ANDiS platform will enable the footballclubs to phase out their existing card infrastructuregradually and issue their supporters, staff, andbusiness relations with the new Mifare-basedcards. The cards will carry nationwide ID andticketing applications, as well as club-specificapplications, such as loyalty, e-purse and accesscontrol for car parks and business clubs.

The KNVB will run one central ANDiSCard & Application Management System, onwhich the clubs will separately manage their ownsecured domain, including interfaces to generaland local applications.

Roda JC and FC Dordrecht will be the firstclubs to make use of the new system.Contact: Peter Menssen at Bell ID,Tel: +31 10 885 1020, email: info@bellid.com

id cards

UK passport pilotready for the offThe UK Passport Service’s (UKPS) biometricenrolment trial is almost ready to roll out. Resultsfrom the trial will help inform the UKgovernment’s plans to introduce smart chip andbiometric-based passports and driving licences,and build a base for the national identity cardscheme.

The six-month trial will test facial, iris andfingerprint recording and recognition. In orderto make the test statistically valid, UKPS hopesto have around 10,000 volunteers, who will eachreceive a personalised smart card carrying bothprinted and electronic information. In fact,UKPS is aiming to ensure the group will posesignificant technical enrolment challenges, byworking with disability groups in order to ensuretheir involvement.

These volunteers will enrol their biometricfeatures at one of four fixed enrolment stationsor via one mobile and one portable unit. Thelocations of the fixed enrolment stations are stilla guarded secret, although Ctt understands thatLondon’s Passport Office is definitely on the list.The route of the mobile unit is still beingcalculated and will take in those areas with thehighest level of interest.

The technical delivery will be provided bySchlumbergerSema and its consortium oftechnology providers, while the recruitment ofvolunteers will be managed by MORI.

The objectives of the pilot will be:• to test the use of biometrics through asimulation of the passport process; • to include exceptional cases, such as peoplewho may have difficulties in enrolment; • to measure the process time and estimatecosts;

• to assess customer perceptions and reactions; • to assess practical aspects of incorporation ofbiometrics into a biometric database; • to trial the use of biometrics to preventduplicate identities; • to test fingerprint and iris biometrics for one-to-many identification and facial recognition forone-to-one verification;• to identify issues and risks and produce anoutline implementation plan.

The UKPS intends to begin issuingpassports incorporating a chip holding a facialbiometric in mid-2005, although it is consideringthe inclusion of a secondary biometric (iris orfingerprint) in a later version of the passport. TheUKPS will subsequently launch a passport cardalso holding biometric information. The UKGovernment is planning to start introducingidentity cards on a phased basis from 2007/08.Contact: Odette Pidcock at UKPS,Tel: +44 207 901 2485,email: Odette.pidcock@ukpa.gsi.gov.uk

financials

Axalto makes goodprogress in 2003Smart card vendor Axalto gave a robustfinancial performance in 2003, according toyear-end results released by its parent companySchlumberger Limited.

According to the results, the card unitgenerated revenue of US$717 million in 2003,up almost 10% on the US$658 million it madein 2002. These figures are likely to position thecompany at the number two spot in terms ofrevenue, with Gemplus expected to edge thenumber one spot with expected revenues of overUS$900 million.

For the fourth quarter, Axalto madeUS$206 million, up 2% sequentially and 6%year-on-year. Meanwhile, pretax operatingincome of US$27 million increased 21%sequentially and 36% year-on-year.

Helping the supplier’s strong performancewas the continuing growth in SIM cardshipments, which were strongest in Europe(especially for high-end 64 Kbyte and 128 KbyteSIMs). In terms of revenue, SIM sales improved12%, of which 3% was due to the strengtheningof European currencies against the US dollar. Thecompany did note a partial increase in SIMdemand from North & South America, althoughthis was partially offset by lower demand in Asia.

Schlumberger does not release full financialresults for Axalto. However, throughout the yearAxalto has reported that shipments to thebanking sector were improved, with conversionto EMV standard a contributing factor. E-purse

4Card Technology Today February 2004

news

• Thales e-Security has announced thatTietoEnator has chosen to use its P3 smartcard personalisation and preparation productas part of its EMV card issuance system. Thefirst bank to use the solution is Hansabank,which issued its first Visa smart cards inAugust 2003 and is one of the largestfinancial institutions in the Baltic countries.Thales' P3 sits at the core of TietoEnator'sEMV solution. Essentially, the product takesa file of cardholder data records (the sameone the banks were using to issue magneticstripe cards) and processes each record toproduce the additional data required forsmart cards. It then creates an output filecontaining all the necessary EMV data,which can be loaded onto the chip.

• Smart card manufacturers associationEurosmart has announced ambitious plans for2004. Among its aims are: the issuance offigures on terminal manufacturing; optimisingsecurity efficiency in terms of assurance,methodology & cost; cooperating on securitycertification and evaluation; monitoring EUand national initiatives, such as eGovernment,ID cards, and driving licences; and sponsoringinternational smart card exhibitions.

• VeriFone, a provider of paymentsolutions, has announced that the discountretailer Family Dollar has installed over10,000 VeriFone Omni 3750 paymentterminals in more than 5000 locationsthroughout the USA. The terminal is certifiedby Concord EFS, meets the latest Triple DESsecurity standards, and is smart card ready.The solution enables immediate acceptance ofelectronic payments and the activation ofprepaid phone cards.

• Latest figures show that ID theft was themost common complaint filed with the USFederal Trade Commission (FTC) last year,accounting for 42% of all reports. This wasthe fourth consecutive year that ID thefttopped the complaints list and, in 2003,reached just over half a million incidents.Web-related complaints accounted for 55% ofall reports, up from 45% in 2002. Internetauctions, meanwhile, accounted for 15% ofcomplaints reported. All complaints receivedby FTC are recorded in its Consumer Sentineldatabase, which also includes complaint datafrom other organisations, including the FBI'sInternet Crime Complaint Centre, the USPostal Inspection Service, and The NationalConsumers League's National FraudInformation Centre.

in brief

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