The A to Z of ID cards

P is for Passports

ePassports, were rolled out in the UK in 2006 and were the first implementation of biometric security technology in the UK.

More than 12.5 million of the first generation biometric ePassports have been issued in the last two years.

The first generation passports contain microchips containing personal information and a digital scan of a person's photograph.

Second-generation ePassports, due to be introduced in the UK in 2011/12, will be fitted with a RFID chip containing fingerprint scans and personal details, which will feature security measures to guard the data against cloning or tampering.