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Is the Real ID Act the real deal for ID security?
Gary Klinefelter, Fargo Electronics
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August 24, 2005 (Computerworld) -- Is the Real ID Act a step toward a safer society or a threat to the liberties we hold dear?
On May 11, President Bush signed a military spending bill including a provision to create electronically readable, federally approved ID cards for all U.S. citizens. The Real ID Act was created in part to secure identification systems and authenticate credentials to avoid fraudulent duplication. Critics fear that the law empowers the federal government to track individuals in their everyday movements, but with the proper security mechanisms in place, the Real ID Act will help prevent ID credentials from being duplicated or otherwise misused.
What is the Real ID Act?
The Real ID Act provides that, as of May 11, 2008, a federal agency may not accept, for any purpose, a U.S. driver's license or identification card that does not meet the provisions defined in the act. Everyday activities, from opening bank accounts to visiting national parks to traveling by air, will require federally approved identification.
While the act is getting a lot of attention, in truth, the process of getting a driver's license today is not much different from what will be required under the act, as similar data is stored on the card. At a minimum, states must include the following information and features on driver's licenses or personal identification cards:
- Legal name
- Date of birth
- Gender
- Driver's license ID number
- Digital photograph
- Address of legal residence
- Signature
- Physical security features designed to prevent tampering, counterfeiting or duplication for fraudulent purposes
- Common machine-readable technology with defined data elements.
Securing your private data
Citizens have willingly provided photos and birth certificates for some time, so this provision is not new. Additional precautions are being taken to make sure that "breeder" documents, such as Social Security cards, birth certificates and driver's licenses, are valid and that biometric information is gathered in a consistent fashion. Today, these records are being stored electronically so the need to protect this information from hackers and criminals has not changed. The biggest challenge will be securing the databases to ensure their integrity.
Certain personal information may no longer need to be printed on the citizen's card because it is stored electronically on a computer chip inside the "smart" card. Security mechanisms can be built into the smart card to make sure that when a citizen provides his card for identification, only predefined personal data will be electronically released.
Critics of the legislation
Critics of the Real ID Act have voiced concerns regarding the issue of civil liberties, privacy and the government acting as Big Brother. From a technology point of view, the critics are most concerned with the potential of data breaches at the Department of Motor Vehicles that could expose sensitive data about individuals. While the collection of personal information is not new and has traditionally been stored in databases, what is new is the linkage among state databases. In effect, the mandates of the act would lead to a national database to house personal data that potentially could be targeted by hackers for malicious use.
Having records shared nationally doesn't have to be a security weakness. Technology can be used to improve records security given the correct policy. A national policy has the potential to improve the security of records among sharing entities, but it must be implemented using technology to secure the process so that one entity does not become a security weakness. Databases that store confidential and sensitive data must be held under the strictest policies to ensure that the information is protected from hackers and other online criminals to prevent breaches and tampering.
The security needs for the national ID card are similar to those of smart driver's licenses. Those needs are twofold. First, the databases that contain a person's private data need to be protected and properly maintained. Second, because a driver's license is used for so many identification purposes, the data residing electronically inside a license needs to be selectively available. Strong encryption will keep the data inside a smart card driver's license secure, but mechanisms are needed to make identification data available without compromising a person's private information.
Beyond the threat of gaining access to the information stored on a card or in a database, there is the serious risk of counterfeiting identities. The terrorists involved in the 9/11 attacks had access to fake identification that allowed them to take flying lessons and board aircraft. By using advanced reverse-image printing technology, ID cards can be printed onto holographic film, which is then transferred to the card. This "sandwiches" the image between the card and the film, enhancing security. The addition of holographic overlaminates can add an additional layer of security to foil a counterfeiter's efforts. Covert printing techniques can also provide additional forensic information not easily detected by a counterfeiter.
Next steps
Vendors must help guide the federal, state and local governments to understand the importance of security while implementing the technologies mandated by the Real ID Act. Together we can protect against security vulnerabilities in the database and in the card. It is important to recognize that in the course of history, implementing new technologies and standards have always meant entering uncharted waters. But by fostering industry and government collaboration, we can ensure the protection and safety of citizens whether from terrorist activities or identity thieves.
Gary Klinefelter is vice president of technology at Fargo Electronics Inc., a vendor of secure credential systems in Eden Prairie, Minn. He holds 22 patents with Fargo. Klinefelter is a longtime member of the IEEE and the Society for Imaging Science and Technology. He is also the chairman of the Open Security Exchange. He can be reached at gklinef@fargo.com.
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