Thursday, October 07, 2004

Article: Virgina considers RFID Driver's Licenses

The state of Virgina, stinging from the fact that nine of nineteen September 11 hijackers used the state's licenses as ID, is considering embedding RFID technology in their new driver's licenses. See the Wired article, which discusses the privacy issues raised by the scheme:

Wired News: RFID Driver's Licenses Debated:

"Some federal and state government officials want to make state driver's licenses harder to counterfeit or steal, by adding computer chips that emit a radio signal bearing a license holder's unique, personal information.

In Virginia, where several of the 9/11 hijackers obtained driver's licenses, state legislators Wednesday will hear testimony about how radio frequency identification, or RFID, tags may prevent identity fraud and help thwart terrorists using falsified documents to move about the country.

Privacy advocates will argue that the radio tags will also make it easy for the government to spy on its citizens and exacerbate identity theft, one of the problems the technology is meant to relieve...."

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