In addition to bolstering its security, Singapore is also working towards simplifying its e-government services by combining digital identities with the mobile platform. This will allow Singaporeans to securely carry out online tasks - including making payments, booking appointments and raising queries - using their smartphones securely anywhere, anytime.
Facilitating Secure and Fast Clearance at Entry Points
Biometric identification technology plays a critical role in a modernized and effective border control system. By storing the biological data of all travelers in digitalized travel documents, immigration agencies from different countries are able to exchange information to identify dangerous individuals a lot more accurately and efficiently. These biometric documents are also embedded with smart chips that contain encrypted details and biometric identifiers to prevent illegal cloning and identity fraud.
Increasingly, countries are seeing the need for such secure elements to be in place for their border control systems. In Singapore, immigration authorities use a two-step verification process that involves biometric and visual identification. By scanning the traveler’s e-passport, the owner’s background information, biological details, and photograph will appear on the immigration officer’s screen. This allows the officer to easily detect any discrepancy and fraudulent activities. This process tightens security at entry points, preventing criminals from entering or departing a country with forged or stolen documents.
Working in tandem with biometric e-passports is the Automated Border Control (ABC) solutions, which has already been implemented in Changi Airport and the Johor-Singapore Causeway checkpoint. These solutions allow travelers to clear immigrations by themselves by scanning their passports and fingerprints on the automated gates’ intuitive interface. This solution greatly accelerates clearance procedures and enhances passenger experience, while preventing identity theft and fraud through biometric data capture.
Growth of e- ID in ASEAN
The adoption of e-passport in Singapore is part of a bigger movement in ASEAN to leverage digital technologies to protect the identity of its people. According to Smart Insights, the ASEAN market is set to deliver more than 71 million e-passports and 350 million e-ID cards by 2017. Malaysia was the world’s first country to implement a national e-ID card that can also store health data, make payments and function as an ATM card, while the Philippines is one of the largest issuers of e-passports in the world. These intense developments demonstrate ASEAN countries’ commitment to equip their citizens with a secure identity and illustrate how digital identity will be a key enabler in strengthening the trust between governments and their citizens.
Securing Identity through Advanced Digital Technologies
The goal of e-ID adoption is to provide residents with a way to securely identify and authenticate themselves when they use e-government services. The first function of any ID card is to identify the holder. The e-ID card contains exactly the same information as the traditional identity card but enables two different levels of identification. The information visible on the card enables visual face-to-face identification, while the digital data in the chip enables automatic identification to be done remotely by matching the information in the country's online database. The chip on the e-ID card is also used for cardholder authentication. Citizens can key in their PIN code to generate a digital authentication certificate that proves the identity of the card holder – just like one does for a banking card.
Looking to the Future - Securing Digital Identities in Mobile Devices
Over the last decade, mobile devices has proliferated rapidly in ASEAN with most of the countries having more than 100% mobile penetration rate and smartphones contributing to 66% of the total mobile phone segment. In Singapore, mobile penetration reached a peak of 156% in 2013. Catering to this growing trend, it is likely that digital identity will converge with the mobile platform and bring forward mobile ID. Implemented through special SIM cards, mobile ID allows users to securely identify, authenticate and sign confidential documents and transactions on the move using their mobile devices. For example, they can perform sensitive transactions, access medical records, submit taxes, and performing a wide spectrum of personalized online services over the mobile network. When a mobile phone is used as a verification device, authentication and signature data are processed to enhance overall security.
As one of the most technological mature nation with high smartphone penetration, Singapore will be an excellent test bed for advanced digital identity initiatives such as mobile ID. As globalization continues to intensify cross-border travels and digitalization continues to transform our society and economy, Singapore can help its ASEAN counterparts roll out this innovative solution in the future. This will lead to the creation of new mobile and government services as well as closer economic integration in the region, without compromising the rights and security of citizens in different ASEAN countries.
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Autor(en)/Author(s): Jimmy Ang
Quelle/Source: Enterprise Innovation, 04.02.2015
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