Cryptography Reference
In-Depth Information
intended to be general purpose 'tokens' that can be used by a range of applications
that require information relating to the identity of a citizen. They are thus tools
that can be deployed in applications, rather than being applications in their own
right. Since identity cards can be deployed with many different functionalities
(and indeed many such schemes do not deploy cryptography at all), we will focus
our discussion on one specific scheme, the Belgian
eID
card scheme, which was
one of the first such schemes to provide cryptographic capability on each identity
card. This is an example of cryptography being made widely available for use by
other applications, rather than cryptography being deployed to provide specific
support to a particular application.
12.6.1
eID background
Within a specific context, such as a workplace, most people accept cards that
contain and/or display data relating to the identity of the holder. However, the
attitude towards
national
identity card schemes is surprisingly diverse and, to
an extent, cultural. In some countries, such as the UK, there is a great deal of
hostility to such schemes. This is largely due to concerns over privacy issues, costs
of deployment, data management and doubts about the utility of such a scheme.
In many other countries, such as Belgium, national identity card schemes have
been rolled out and are integrated into daily life.
The main application of national identity cards is to present independently
issued evidence of the identity of the card holder. Such cards typically display
a photograph of the card holder and some personal details, which may include
a handwritten signature. However, the progress in smart card technology and
the development of cryptographic applications has presented the opportunity
for national identity cards to provide additional functionality and thus, perhaps,
become more useful.
Figure 12.11.
eID card
