FC: EPIC on state DMVs concocting a national ID scheme

[Declan McCullagh <declan () well com>]

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    Volume 9.01                                   January 14, 2002
    --------------------------------------------------------------

                             Published by the
               Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC)
                             Washington, D.C.

              http://www.epic.org/alert/EPIC_Alert_9.01.html

[...]

=======================================================================
[1] State DMVs Developing National ID System
=======================================================================

A Task Force of the American Association of Motor Vehicle
Administrators (AAMVA) announced plans today to increase uniformity of
state driver's licenses and information sharing between states and law
enforcement agencies.  The AAMVA proposal combines several
initiatives, each with very different privacy implications, and asks
for $100 million in federal funding to determine what technology
should be used and to expand information sharing capacity.  Efforts to
enhance document security and prevent forgery, such as improved
holograms and printing techniques, are a positive application of
technology to the driver's license regime.  The AAMVA also advocates
stricter enforcement and tougher penalties for fraud and abuse of
driver's licenses occurring inside and outside of DMVs.

Standardization of driver's license security features and issuance
standards across the 50 states, as well as information sharing with
federal agencies and state law enforcement, would make the driver's
license a de facto national identity card.  The AAMVA has not
disclosed how the detailed personal information required to obtain a
license, including residency and immigration status and social
security information, will be collected, used and shared under the new
program.  The AAMVA has also proposed making the driver's license a
unique identifier.  While they have not yet determined what technology
will be implemented, they plan to use biometric or other identifiers
to positively ensure that license applicants are who they say they
are, and that no person holds more than one license.  This proposal
presents the most significant privacy and security risks, which are
detailed in EPIC's ID Card and Biometrics pages referenced below.

The possible creation of national identification cards through
driver's licenses deserves careful examination and open public
discussion.  EPIC is in the process of drafting a memo discussing the
risks and policy implications of national identification schemes, to
be prepared in time for the AAMVA's leadership summit, where the heads
of the state DMVs will discuss the task force's recommendations.

AAMVA's website (including an archived webcast of the January 14th
press conference):

     http://www.aamva.org/
        
EPIC's ID Card Page:

     http://www.epic.org/privacy/id_cards/

EPIC's Biometrics Page:

     http://www.epic.org/privacy/biometrics/

[...]




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