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An identity document (also known as I.D. or ID) is a piece of documentation designed to verify aspects of a person's identity. If an identity document is in the form of a small standard-sized card, such as an ISO 7810 card, it is called an identity card.

What the identity document might include

Information present on the document — or in a supporting database — might include the bearer's full name, a portrait photo, age, birth date, address, an identification number, profession or rank, restrictions, and citizenship status. New technologies could allow identity cards to contain biometric information, such as photographs, face, hand or iris measurements, or fingerprints. Electronic identity cards or e-IDs are already available in some territories such as Hong Kong, Malaysia, Estonia, Belgium and Spain. Morocco is also planning to launch a new identity card of biometric type by January 2007.

Arguments for and against identity cards

Identity cards are a source of continuous debate. Their use is backed by law enforcement officials who claim that it can make surveillance and identification of criminals much easier. However, concern is also expressed about the extensive cost and potential abuse of hi-tech smartcards.

In the United Kingdom and the United States especially, statewide-issued compulsory identity cards or to be more precise their centralised database are a source of debate as they are regarded an infringement of privacy and civil liberties. Most criticism is directed towards possibilities of extensive abuse of identity documents because of the use of central databases to store sensitive data. A 2006 survey of United Kingdom Open University students concluded that the planned compulsory identity card coupled with a central government database generated the most negative attitudinal response among several alternative configurations.

Arguments in favor

• One can be identified in banks or at national borders without a passport, making the identity card as a passport.
• Identity cards can be used to quickly verify ownership or eligibility to services; for example, a shopkeeper or cashier may request that an ID document be shown by a client paying with a credit card or cheque.
• False identitification may be reduced in countries where identity cards are required to open a bank account. Of course, phishing and many other forms of identity theft will be unaffected.
• Identity cards would be a useful administrative tool that could increase efficiency in dealings with both the government and private companies.
• ID cards reduce crime. All banks require that ID cards be presented by customers, which increases security. Certain auction houses also require them from sellers.
• In American states that don't issue identity cards, private companies require equivalent documents, such as driver's licenses, which are not properly suited for identification purposes. Persons who don't have a driver's license are usually required in practice to get a document that is something very much like an identity card.
• Law enforcers can locate and identify people who either do not know or cannot communicate their names and/or addresses (e.g., due to Alzheimer's disease, amnesia or heavy intoxication), or who claim names that are not consistent with the names on their identity cards (e.g., due to dissociative identity disorder, as in the case of Billy Milligan).
• Cards may help reduce immigration service bureaucracy. In certain countries, the procedures for deporting illegal immigrants whose ages, identities or nationalities cannot be formally established are more complex than those for whom they can be readily asserted. This gives illegal immigrants more time to prepare their legal defenses. In some countries (Spain, for instance) it may prevent the immigrant's deportation altogether. However, in this situation most illegal immigrants will destroy their identity papers, nullifying the reduction in bureaucracy.
• All humans already carry unfalsifiable personal identification, which cannot be discarded: DNA. In lieu of identity cards, use of DNA sequencing hashes may soon become the preferred method for personal identification, even when interacting with private economic entities. The use of identity cards is arguably a lesser evil compared to the potentially extensive privacy risks associated with daily use of DNA for identification purposes.

Arguments in opposition

• It has been argued that identity cards impose a disproportionate burden upon both government and citizens while empowering the executive, which is contrary to the maxim: "the government that governs best, governs least". Some have pointed out that extensive lobbying for identity cards has been undertaken, in countries without compulsory identity cards, by IT companies who will be likely to reap rich benefits in the event of an identity card scheme being implemented.
• Cards with centralised database could be used to track anyone's movements and private life, thus endangering privacy. The proposed British ID card (see next section) will involve a series of linked databases, to be managed by the private sector. Managing disparate linked systems using a range of institutions and any number of personnel is alleged to be a security disaster in the making.
• A requirement to carry an identity card at all times can lead to the inconvenience of arbitrary requests from card controllers (such as the police). This can lead to functionality creep whereby carrying a card becomes de facto if not de jure compulsory, as in the case of Social Security numbers, which are now widely used as ID.
• Government claims that identity cards will prevent crimes may not be based in fact. The former UK Home Secretary Charles Clarke conceded that identity cards may only be useful in the identification of bodies in the aftermath of a crime. The facts that the terrorists involved in 9/11 and the London tube attacks did have and would have had identity cards, respectively. As a strong presumption of identity is given in favour of a card holder, the identity card scheme might be an asset to potential terrorists.
• Historically, totalitarian governments which issued identity cards to citizens used them forcefully. For example, Nazi Germany made use of unique biometric identities by tattooing identification numbers on the arms of concentration-camp detainees. More recently, the apartheid-era government of South Africa used pass books as internal passports to oppress that country's black population.
• In many cases, other forms of documentation such as a driver's license, passport, or Medicare card serve a similar function on a more limited scale, and thus an ID card is not needed.
• The cost of introducing and administering an identity card system can be very high. Figures from £30 (US$60) to £90 or even higher have been suggested for the proposed UK ID card.
• In some countries where ID cards are required to show religious affiliation (as used to be the case in Greece) or ethnic background, this can lead to cases of discrimination. This can become a bureaucratic nightmare when a person changes his or her affiliation which in any case should be a private matter of no business to officialdom.

Identity cards worldwide

Nations with ID cards

compulsory identity cards

According to Privacy International, as of 1996, around 100 countries had compulsory identity cards.

The term "compulsory" may have different meanings and implications in different countries. The compulsory character may apply only after a certain age. Often, a ticket can be given for being found without one's identification document, or in some cases a person may even be detained until the identity is ascertained. In practice, random controls are rare, except in certain times.

Chile

Every resident in Chile over the age of 18 must have and carry at all times their ID Card called "Cedúla de Identidad" issued by the Civil Registry and Identification Service. It contains the full name, gender, nationality, date of birth, a photograph, right thumb print, ID number and the personal signature.

This is the only official form of identification for residents in Chile and is widely used and accepted as such. Its necessary for every contract, most bank transactions, voting, driving (along with the driver's license) and other public and private situations.

The refusal to carry or show the ID to a law enforcement agent (civil or uniformed police) can lead to detention up to 6 hours or until the identity can be verified (whichever comes first).

Greece

A very wide ID system based on personal ID cards is in place in Greece. ID cards are issued only by Local Police Offices on behalf of the Ministry of Public Order and they include information on both two sides such as holder's signature, photo, personal details (Name, Surname, Father's name, Father's surname, Mother's name, Mother's surname, Date and Place of Birth, Height, Place of suffrage (Demotologion) including the Family Number and Place and Police Office of the issue. Also, they have 2 more optional fields, which are Blood Type and Blood Rhesus.

Since 2000, names' fields have been completed filled with both Greek and Latin characters, which facilitates traveling intra- Schengen travel with the ID card.

Since 2005, the procedure to issue an ID card has been fully simplified and now all citizens over 12 years old must have an ID card, which they can issue within few hours. Prior to that date, the age of compulsory issue was at 14 and the whole procedure could last over a year.

In Greece, an ID card is a citizen's most important document, as it is used in all public and private transactions. For instance, it is required to create a bank account, to make a contract, to have state insurance, to register in a school or university, and take part in various examinations etc. Citizens are also required to produce ID cards at the request of law enforcement personnel. Failure to do so can lead to brief detaintion for the purposes of identity verification. For non-residents, the passport acts as the ID card.

Spain

Everybody in Spain over 14 must have a National Identity Card issued by National Police. On the front side of the document there is a color photograph, the name and two surnames, the signature and the id number. It also contains the issue date and the expiration date. Depending on the age of the person the card has a validity of 5, 10 years or permanent. In the back side of the card the birth date and place, the genre, the father's name (where known) and mother's name and the current address. At the bottom of the back side some of the previous information is written in special characters suitable to be read by OCRs.

The id number is an eight digit number followed by a letter. The letter is only a CRC used to check the correctness of the number. The id number is not unique.

In Spain, an ID card is the most important document of a citizen. It is used in all public and private transactions. It is required to create a bank account, to make a contract, to have state insurance, to register in a university or to be fined by a policeman. It is one of the official documents required to vote at any election, although any other form of official ID such as the driving license of the passport may be used. Also, it is required to be shown at every police officer's request. A refusal could be considered a reason to be detained or arrested.

Since 2006 a new version of the 'DNI' is being introduced. The new 'Electronic DNI' is a Smart card that allows digitally signing of documents.

non-compulsory identity cards

A number of countries have non-compulsory identity card schemes. These include Austria, Canada, Finland, France (see France section), Hungary (however, all citizens of Hungary must have at least a valid passport, photocard driving licence, or the National ID card), Iceland, Sweden, Switzerland.

In the European Union identity cards meeting an European standard can be used by European citizens as a travel document replacing passports.

In the United States, some states issue non compulsory identity cards for people who do not hold a driver's license as an alternate means of identification.

During the UK Presidency of the EU in 2005 a decision was made to: "Agree common standards for security features and secure issuing procedures for ID cards (December 2005), with detailed standards agreed as soon as possible thereafter. In this respect, the UK Presidency has put forward a proposal for EU-wide use of biometrics in national ID cards."

Italy

Everybody in Italy over 15 can have a 4-page Identity Card issued by the town of residence. The first page includes the ID card number, the issuing town, and the name and surname. On the second page the card shows again the name and surname, together with the birth date and place, the gender, and the current address. The third page of the document includes a color photograph and the signature. It also contains the issue date. The card has a validity of 5 years.

The id number is two letters followed by seven or more digits and is unique.

In Italy, an ID card is the most important document of a citizen. It can be used instead of a passport to create a bank account, to validate a credit card transaction, to vote, to enter many countries in Europe (including Switzerland) and to check in on flights to these countries, etc. However, for most of these uses it can be replaced with other documents, including the driving license. It is required to show such a document to every police officer's request.

As of 2007 a new electronic identity card is being phased in.

nations currently implementing ID cards

India is starting to issue a national ID cards, see MNIC – Multipurpose National Identity Card (India)

nations without a country wide identity card system

A number of countries do not use country wide identity cards to verify identity. These include Australia, Denmark, Ireland, Japan, New Zealand, Norway.

France

France has had a national ID card since 1940, when it helped the Vichy authorities identify 76,000 for deportation as part of the Holocaust. Italian philosopher Giorgio Agamben often underlines this, showing how anthropometry may be used by the state.

In the past, identity cards were compulsory, had to be updated each year in case of change of residence and were valid for 10 years, and their renewal required paying a fee. In addition to the face photograph, the card included the family name, first names, date and place of birth, and the national identity number managed by the national INSEE registry, and which is also used as the national service registration number, as the Social Security account number for health and retirement benefits, for access to court files and for tax purposes.

Today, the law (Art. 78–1 to 78–6 of the French Penal Procedure Code ) only mentions that during a ID check performed by police or gendarmerie, one can prove his identity "by any means", the validity of which is left to the appreciation of the law enforcement official. Though not stated explicitly in the law, an ID card or a passport will, in most circumstances, be sufficient. The decision to accept other documents, with or without the bearer's photograph is left to the discretion of the law enforcement officer.

Random checks of passers-by's ID by the French police are quite common, especially in poorer neighborhoods. Even though it is not compulsory de jure to carry an ID, not doing so may lead to a de facto arrest ("vérification d'identité") of up to 4 hours according to art. 78–3 of the French Penal Procedure Code ("Code de procédure pénale").

For financial transactions, ID cards and passports are almost always accepted as proof of identity. Due to common forgery, driver licenses are sometimes refused. For transactions by cheque involving a larger sum, two different ID documents are frequently requested by merchants.

The current identification cards are now issued free of charge, and are non-compulsory. The current government has proposed a compulsory biometric card system, which has been opposed by human rights groups and by the national authority and regulator on computing systems and databases, the Commission nationale de l’informatique et des libertés, CNIL. Another non-compulsory project is being discussed.

United Kingdom

Since the early 1950s there has been no national identity card in the United Kingdom, but the Identity Cards Act (effective 30 March 2006) makes one compulsory for anyone getting a new or renewed passport from 2008. Driving licences and passports are now the most widely used ID documents.

United States

The United States of America passed a bill entitled the Real ID Act on May 11, 2005. The bill compels states to begin redesigning their driver's licenses to comply with federal antiterrorist standards by December of 2009. Federal employees would reject licenses or identity cards that don't comply, which would force Americans accessing everything from airplanes to national parks and some courthouses to have the federally mandated cards.

The bill takes place as governments are growing more interested in implanting technology in ID cards to make them smarter and more secure. The U.S. State Department soon will begin issuing passports with radio frequency identification, or RFID, chips embedded in them, and Virginia may become the first state to glue RFID tags into all its driver's licenses.

The Real ID Act gives unfettered authority to the Department of Homeland Security to dictate and design some aspects of state ID cards and driver's licenses. Among the possibilities: biometric information such as retinal scans, fingerprints, DNA data and RFID tracking technology.

Other non-sovereign state ID cards

Some Basque nationalist organizations are issuing para-official identity cards (Euskal Nortasun Agiria) as a means to reject the nationality notions implied by Spanish and French compulsory documents. Then, they try to use the ENA instead of the official document.

For the people of Western Sahara, pre-1975 Spanish cards are the main proof that they were Saharaui citizens as opposed to recent Moroccan colonists. They would be thus allowed to vote in an eventual self-determination referendum.

Non-national identity cards

Some companies and government departments issue ID cards for security purposes; they may also be proof of a qualification. For example, all taxi drivers in the UK and Hong Kong carry ID cards. In Queensland and Western Australia, anyone working with children has to take a background check and get issued a Blue Card or Working with Children Card, respectively.

See also

• Anthropometry
• Biometrics
• Home Return Permit, a special kind a national ID card issued for PRC citizens living in Hong Kong and Macao.
• Identity document forgery
• Pass Law, which mandated people carry a pass book in apartheid South Africa
• Passport
• Visa (document)
• NO2ID – campaigning against ID cards in the UK

References

1. Joinson, Adam N. (2006). "Watching me, watching you: privacy attitudes and reactions to identity card implementation scenarios in the United Kingdom" (Abstract). Journal of Information Science. 32 (4): 334–343. doi:10.1177/0165551506064902. Retrieved 2006-12-09. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
2. "EU: UK Presidency advances EU-wide ID card standards, data retention and intelligence sharing to fight terrorism". eGovernment News. 2005-07-14. Retrieved 2007-04-18. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

External links

• Information on Smart Cards
• Privacy International identity card FAQ
• Telegraph story: the case for and against identity cards
• REAL ID Watch
• The Loyal Nine, youth based civil liberties organization.
• ID Card – Is Big Brother Stalking You? – MP3 recording and reference list from Diffusion science radio program on 2SER broadcast on 1st March 2007.

• Authentication methods
• Personal documents
• Personal identification
• International travel documents