HID Global, a supplier of secure identity, announced that its e-government RFID reader technology is being deployed in France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands and Spain to help create an identity-checking infrastructure in Europe. The company will be deploying its technology through system integrators in two additional countries.
HID’s reader modules offer one of the solutions for biometric passport reading, and its reader technology is supporting both basic access control (BAC) and extended access control (EAC) as Europe and the rest of the world moves to more secure digital credential technologies. Altogether, HID’s e-government inlays, readers and printers are now used by ministries of interior and foreign affairs in more than 27 e-passport programs and 31 ID/e-ID programs worldwide, making life easier for more than 120 million e-document holders.
“We understand how important it is to minimize delays while maximizing security at border crossings, and so we have focused on delivering reader speed, accuracy and flexibility in our e-passports and other e-government solutions,” said Mark Scaparro, Senior VP of Identification Solutions with HID Global.
HID’s combination of BAC and EAC support makes it easier for countries to support existing requirements while migrating to the latest, more rigorous security standards. BAC is typically used for government identity verification and for such commercial applications as accelerated hotel check-in/checkout, self-serve airline check-in, and purchasing disposable mobile telephony credits. For greater security, EAC is used to enable biometric matching during e-passport and e-ID document issuance and at automated border-crossing locations including airports in Finland, France, Germany, Portugal and the U.K.
According to Acuity Market Intelligence, e-passport market revenues will grow at a compounded annual growth rate of 31.5 percent to nearly US$7 billion annually by the end of 2014. The firm reported in its April study entitled, "The Global e-Passport and e-Visa Industry Report," that e-Passports accounted for 57 percent of all passports issued and 28 percent of all passports in circulation during 2009, and that 88 percent of all passports issued in 2014 will be electronic passports.