By Steve Ranger, 23 October 2006 15:00
NEWS
The government won't test all of the technology underpinning its ID cards plans before the project goes live, it has revealed.
But it also insists it will not chase "unrealistic" delivery targets for the project.
The claim came in the government response to the Identity Card Technologies report published by the House of Commons science and technology committee in August.
The government said it "would not be realistic to rigorously test everything before the scheme 'goes live' to the point where the government can be sure no further changes need to be made to the design of the scheme".
Some parts of the system will not be tested but will use off-the-shelf technology that has been "adequately" tested elsewhere, it said.
Trials will focus on the parts of the technology that could have the biggest impact on the ID cards project, it said.
Testing the entire system before going live would involve trialling a large number of low-risk technologies, such as email, which would not be cost-effective and may "needlessly delay launch", the government said.
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The government said it plans to roll out the ID cards project incrementally - and then learn from the early stages and use that data to modify the scheme's design as it grows.
It said: "The performance of the end-to-end solution will be tested during the rollout - the risk of this strategy being controlled, if necessary, through varying the rate of the rollout."
The priority is that the programme "should have a sensible and practical delivery timetable rather than be focused on chasing unrealistic delivery dates", it added.
Comments
There are 14 comments. Join the discussion
1. Ken Hall
far from being a scheme to prevent ID fraud, The untested implementation of this scheme looks like becomeing the biggest gift to ID fraudsters yet.
2. anonymous
so we can all expect this to be late, massively over budget and not meet expectations. This lot NEVER learn...
3. Karen Challinor
it won't be rushed but they desperately need to get something in place in a hurry, so when they get voted out the next lot will find it uneconomic to remove, so that the next time the public forgets and votes them back in they have somewhere to start
any sign of the gateway reviews being released to parliament yet ?
4. Alan Reid
Even a simple upgrade to IE7 on XP SP2 is causing issues, so what makes the Government believe they can do what the rest of us can't. Perhaps as an industry it is time to stop this ludicrous waste of money. After all it's our money they're wasting.
5. Jeremy Robinson
Naive government spokesman talking here.
Verification which includes Testing as well as Use (for emails) and the
Validation of all requirements is vital, as is end to end testing, using all technologies including proven systems like email, if indeed the system is dependent on email. Boundaries could be drawn on the "system under test" to preclude other human interactions like phone calls and emails if the emails are not read directly by the new IT system.
The government spokesman seems to be naive in 2 ways, first in being simplistic by talking about testing only, secondly by putting the negative view that scares the naive reader [then adds a smart and also naive response!]
6. Graham Coles
Now we know ID cards will fail.
The sooner this fiasco is scrapped the better. IT companies know the importance of testing a system, but once again the lunatics are running the asylum and so the most vital piece of the QA puzzle will simply be omitted in a pathetic attempt to rush a load of very dubious technology through.
As far as I understand, even the trials were having problems with iris recognition failing a reasonable percentage of people, facial recognition that doesn't work when you smile ...
Simply testing individual bits of a complicated integrated system is wholly inadequate. Considering the number of technologies involved with this project, and the size and complexity of it, I would have thought that a full system test would have been mandatory.
Clearly I'm in the wrong business.
7. Alastair Warren
Someone needs to intervene and stop this being the disaster we all know it will be.
This Govt. is like a drunk staggering from a pub. Will someone please take the car keys from them!
8. anonymous
ITS DOOMED
9. Alastair Warren
Isn't this like the Govt. having unprotected, penetrative sex with our wedding tackle?
10. Charles Smith
The Immigration Control System. Let's be honest, unlike the government, and recognise that the only reason for this system is to identify those people who don't have the right to work/live in the UK.
As far as the computer system is concerned it is wasteful and will be poorly managed. Why couldn't they just modify one of the other existing central government systems such as the DVLA systems. The Spin Doctors might say I don't understand the complexity, but I issue this challenge - let me run the show and it will be ready on time and cost an awful lot less. The biometric smart card is purely toys for boys and not necessary.
11. Roger Huffadine
Integrating previously used and tested systems - ha - anyone ever tried this 'simple' strategy?
Yup, I have it takes a long time to integrate the systems, vendors squabble and the whole thing screws up Big time for a Long time.
12. Craig Mitchell
The Golden Rule of IT Development: Test, Test and Test again. TEST EVERYTHING. TWICE.
Its a pain but every IT pro knows you have to test, allocate as much time as your client will pay for for testing, ideally at least as much as spent developing.
If you don't you end up having to fix a live system - your clients do the testing for you, everyone ends up pissed off and because the system is live and not working it costs far, far more overall - downtime costs money, mistakes cost money and IT guys on overtime trying to fix an emergency cost lots and lots of money.
As an alternative they could just say forget the whole thing and cut our taxes instead. Just an idea but it is our money they are pissing up against the wall.
13. Steve Hodson
"Will they never learn" is a recurring theme. There are so many alarm bells ringing over this project I wonder at the deafness of those responsible.
14. Radical Meldrew
Untried, untested & unplanned = unworkable, uneconomical & unthinkable; except in the unethical minds of Westminster.