By Steve Ranger, 19 December 2006 16:55
NEWS
The government has trimmed back its controversial ID cards plans, ditching a single mega-database to hold all ID card information, and shelving the use of iris-scanning biometrics.
The National Identity Register (NIR) was to be the giant database at the heart of the project, holding personal identity information and biometric data for everyone enrolled in the scheme. But now three existing systems will share the NIR information instead.
The government's action plan for the ID cards project revealed: "These sets of information - biometric, biographical and administrative - do not all need to be held in a single system. In fact, for security reasons, and to make best use of the strengths of existing systems, it makes sense to store them separately."
All about ID cards
Learn about every aspect of the UK's national ID cards scheme in the A to Z of ID cards.
James Hall, CEO of the Identity and Passport Service, told silicon.com: "One of the key things we've been looking at is the use of existing government assets wherever useful. The Department for Work and Pensions has a very large Customer Information System (CIS) and we believe there is a huge opportunity to reuse that technology to store the biographic component of the National Identity Registry."
The CIS technology is already used to hold records for everyone who has a National Insurance number, although the data in the existing system will not be copied but recorded new when people are enrolled in the scheme.
Existing biometric storage systems currently used for asylum seekers will be used for the NIR in the short term. For the Public Key Infrastructure information related to the secure use and issue of ID cards, the plan is to build on existing systems used to issue ePassports which currently rely on facial biometrics.
The plan for which biometrics will be used in the ID cards has changed too. Iris scans are now not going to be used following the review of the project in the summer - only fingerprints and facial biometrics.
The action plan also revealed that while the first ID cards will be issued in 2009, it will be 2010 before "significant volumes" of the cards will be ready.
There are likely to be between five and 10 procurements needed to provide the technology behind the system, a process that will start in April or May 2007 and last for around a year.
Despite the tight deadline, Hall said: "The timetable we've laid out represents our best current estimates of what we can do. This is not a greenfield site - we are not dealing with technology that is unknown. We think we have a sensible, credible plan that we can deliver."
Comments
There are 11 comments. Join the discussion
1. Graham Coles
They think they have a sensible, credible plan for ID cards ...
... then why don't they publish it, along with the estimated costings and other details they don't want people to find out.
Or to use one of the stupid sayings the government always seem to fall back on, 'If they have nothing to hide, what are they afraid of?'
2. Charles Smith
This was a clear case of engage brain before designing a new ASAD (All Signing All Dancing) Database System. The DVLA systems, National Insurance, Passport systems could be modified to hold the necessary data at a tiny fraction of the original cost.
Sadly our leaders(?) know zippo about their existing computer systems. As a consequence they are led around by the nose by the major consultancies.
3. Maryon Jeane
So let me get this straight. We're not going to have one big, infallible database any more with one single ID number linking every person in the UK to their details. We're not going to have iris scans which are such an infallible identifier of one unique person.
What we're going to have is already-existing (well-reasearched, well-maintained and infallible) databases which, it seems, are to be a glorious merging of already-existing (infallibly correct) data and new data from people interviewed in brand new interrogation centres round the country.
This is going to stop terrorism in its tracks, wipe out benefit fraud, prevent illegal immigration and be a final solution to crime.
Waterfront property in Montana, anyone?
And this is costing how much, precisely?
4. Karen Challinor
well now the database has gone so have the majority of my objections
now all we need is for these to be issued free instead of being some kind if stealth tax for existing and I'll be a lot happier
5. Simon
So lets get this clear ...
They have realised that there's no way they will a) get the new system to work anyways, and b) persuade people to sign up for it.
So they are spinning this as a step down (by dropping just one of the biometrics) and are going to use the very systems that they've been telling us they couldn't use as justification for buildig the mega database.
So they were either lying when they claimed that only this megadatabase could do the job, or they're lying now when they say the separate system can, after all, do it.
Of course, there is the third option - this has always been a complete disaster looking for somewhere to happen and the idiot^H^H^H^H^Hpoliticians in charge have finally realised that the whole thing was never going to work and have finally decided to listen to some advice.
Even so, it's still a massive intrusion on private life, and these changes do not materially alter the criticisms of the whole project.
6. Radical Meldrew
Mega-database ditched enabling a saving of mega-bucks? All we need to do now is rid ourselves of the mega-lomaniac who dreampt up the crazy idea in the first place.
7. galley slave#41
Well thats a relief 'cos I've got two glass eyes. Now all I have to do is practice some gurning and burn off my finger prints. PASS THE ACID SOMEONE!
8. Norman Cesar
Recipe for the perfect waste of money
First spec out a system that will require huge amounts money, hardware and resources.
Two mount a massive campaign to show people how said system will be the cure all societies ills.
Next mix in some hiding of expected costs and figures and try to play down respected analysts findings
Then back track and ditch new hardware and systems and decide to re-hash old systems.
Stick it in development for 3 years and dont worry if you wont have any cards ready it'll sort itself out.
This ID card scheme has been a disaster from start to finish. It should scrapped and looked at again. Every project manager knows big changes to specs half way through a project leaves you with a solution that does not solve your problems and creates big new ones.
If the government are serious about doing the ID Card System using existing systems they need to start the project again and define it properly. And quiestions have to be asked if amending the existing systems will be cheaper and better than why didn't the government do that in the first place?
9. Jeremy Wickins
I fail to see how this is an improvement on the original poor scheme. It still relies on inaccurate machine reading of biometrics, which is error-prone, especially if the person is not a healthy white middle-class male (short hair, no beard, no make-up), with no disabilities (such as short-sightedness...). However, it is now linked to existing databases that are full of inaccuracies, which means that identities cannot be accurately verified, and can lead to people having their identities officially allocated to someone else!!
10. anonymous
Can someone explain to me why a terrorist would NOT get an ID card, If they are British based nationals, then wouldn't the best way to hide in the community be to do eactly what the rest of the population are expected to do and carry a card?
Or will the ID card show Occupation - Terrorist?
11. anonymous
Yet another indication that this ill-fated, unpopular 'poll tax' style scheme has not been thought out at all from day one.
The only winners are the consultants. The losers are the rest of us.
If you think this would make one jot of difference to terrorism, think again. So just what is the point?