International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Ninth Symposium and Exhibition – HID Global announced the successful roll-out of the newly designed Irish electronic passport (e-passport). HID Global joined forces with DLRS Group and X INFOTECH to implement the Irish e-passport project.
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Ninth Symposium and Exhibition – HID Global announced the successful roll-out of the newly designed Irish electronic passport (e-passport). HID Global joined forces with DLRS Group, the security printing company in Ireland, and X INFOTECH, a system integrator and MultiPerso software suite developer, to implement the Irish e-passport project. Working together, the companies are providing an end-to-end solution including e-passport delivery, personalization and production management. The newly designed Ireland e-passport uses the latest security technologies to protect citizens' identities while providing the Republic of Ireland with a flexible, efficient and highly secure passport solution.
DLRS is the prime contractor for the project. Beyond serving as the project manager for the joint effort, DLRS manufactures and delivers the new Irish passport booklets and configured the personalization solution for the new e-passports alongside its partners HID Global and X INFOTECH.
The new Irish e-passport replaces the previous document, and provides an exceptional level of security including HID Global's polycarbonate electronic data page with contactless chip inlays making the passports very hard to forge or copy. The new e-passports also incorporate HID Global's innovative Crack Prevention Feature (CPF) that enhances the durability and reliability of polycarbonate e-passport data pages, especially those with embedded RFID chips. With CPF, governments can fully leverage the advantages of smart card technology and protect their investment by extending the life of ID credentials for up to ten years.
“HID Global is delighted to contribute to the new generation of Ireland's e-passport and national eID program,” said Rob Haslam, Vice President Government ID Solutions with HID Global. X INFOTECH provided its MultiPerso personalization solution for contactless chips including ICAO data preparation.
The newly designed Irish passport features images of iconic Irish landmarks including the Croagh Patrick, Kylemore Abbey and Croke Park, in addition to drawings depicting Irish music and dance and Gaelic games. According to Mr. Gilmore, the Tanaiste and Minister for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, “Irish passport holders travel more often and to more destinations than at any time in the past.” More than 630,000 Irish passports were issued in 2012 and the Republic of Ireland has approximately 4.5 million citizens who could potentially be issued these new passports.