Britain says it will introduce compulsory ID cards, no date set

[MaineDem]

LONDON, Nov. 11 — The British government said Tuesday it wants to introduce compulsory identity cards to protect against illegal immigration, welfare fraud and terrorism — though implementation is years away.

Home Secretary David Blunkett said the government would introduce the scheme after building a national database of biometric information using fingerprints, iris scans and facial recognition technology.

''An ID card scheme will help tackle the crime and serious issues facing the U.K., particularly illegal working, immigration abuse, ID fraud, terrorism and organized crime,'' Blunkett said.

http://famulus.msnbc.com/famulusintl/ap11-11-073026.asp?reg=europe&vts=111120030808

[StClone]

1. World "Free Speech Zones"

When BushCo does London who is he trying to impress? The Brits find him highly "protest-able".

[MetaTrope]

2. Why not barcode tattoos?

:eyes:

[Dover]

3. In many ways it seems the UK is way ahead of the US in fascist

police rule (Big Brother technologies). And yet, I rarely hear of any major protest regarding these matters. In some areas of London you can barely take a crap without being on camera. All in the name of crime prevention in a country that has had relatively few problems in this area, to my knowledge (and that is NOT because of these "security" measures).

[T_i_B]

4. The ID card is the fraudster's friend

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2002/07/07/do0703.xml&sSheet=/opinion/2002/07/07/ixop.html&secureRefresh=true&_requestid=289293

In his quest to curb illegal immigration, fight crime and fraud, reduce tax evasion and thwart terrorism, David Blunkett has initiated a process that will actually compound and entrench all of these problems.

Recent events in the US may give him pause for thought. Last week 36 people were indicted in New Jersey for their part in a criminal conspiracy to issue thousands of fake driver's licences and eight staff of the New Jersey Division of Motor Vehicles have so far been arrested. Given that in the US the driver's licence is the nearest thing to an ID card, it is understandable that the arrests have caused widespread dismay. A spokesman for the Criminal Justice Division of New Jersey said that the parking lots of the Division of Motor Vehicles in at least six counties were like "flea markets for illegal documents". In spite of all attempts to tighten the procedure for issuing licences, US officialdom has lost faith in the integrity of its primary means of identification.

Corruption on a similar scale besets most official ID schemes from Australia to Thailand. High black-market demand and huge investment by criminals entices officials to bend or break the rules of eligibility. An ID card system is a gift for corrupt civil servants or contract staff in search of extra cash. Quite apart from the unsavoury prospect of official corruption, the technology gap between governments and organised crime has now narrowed so much that within weeks of their introduction even the most secure ID cards can be available in the form of blanks onto which individual identity information can be incorporated.

Even the creation of a "counterfeit-proof" card would not stop the criminal use of identity documents because fraud does not necessarily depend on counterfeiting. In 1999, a former accountant was charged in London with obtaining up to 500 UK passports under false identities. The scam used genuine identity documents such as birth certificates acquired from drug addicts and prisoners.

[Ratty]

5. Maybe an ID card is a good idea here too

But maybe I'm giving up the fight too soon.

We already have a defacto ID card requirement. You can't fly without one. You can't open a bank account. You can't drive. You can't get a decent job. You can't enjoy most of the conveniences of the modern age without one. Police can demand an id at any time and they are empowered to arrest you if you don't provide it. Sure, you could sneak through life with an impoverished, cash-only existence, or break the law, but it ain't easy.

Identity theft is becoming more and more of a problem with our social security numbers, driver's license numbers, credit ratings ... all the details of our lives out there on the internet for anyone to get. Social security numbers are now worthless and in fact only exacerbate the problem because most of our institutions are still built on the myth that they are private.

The only difference is that now we have our choice of id. We can use a driver's license, a passport, an official id card, but we have to have one of them. Why not issue a true id to every citizen and back it with the full force of the law to prevent credit companies, our employers, landlords, the IRS, and our banks from demanding it as a condition of doing business?

Yes, it's a 1984 scenario. I'm as concerned for my civil rights and privacy as any patriot. But I'm only thinking practically here. As long as id is required anyway, let's move forward and do it right.

[It was not a pretzel]

7. A biometric ID

does nothing to protect you from online fraud.

[It was not a pretzel]

6. It's worth pointing out

that these cards will contain biometric data.