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Advanced Technology Meets International
Standard for Secure Travel Documents
Infineon Technologies AG announced that
it received a multi-million-piece purchase order from
the United States government to supply its highly secure
integrated circuit technology for the new electronic
passport. Designed to facilitate international travel
by allowing automatic identity verification, faster
immigration inspections and greater border protection
and security, the new passports include a computer chip
in the back cover that securely stores the same information
that is printed on the document.
The US began issuing electronic passports to diplomats
and other government workers in late 2005, and is now
expanding the program to include the widely issued tourist
passport used by private citizens. By the end of this
year, the government expects that all new US passports
will be issued as electronic passports.
“The United States is helping to set the pace
for adoption of more secure travel documents around
the world,” said Christopher Cook, Managing Director
of Infineon Technologies North America Corp. “As
the leading supplier of the specialized chips used for
secure personal identification, financial transactions
and access to electronic systems, our chips have successfully
passed some of the most stringent security tests in
the world. We are very happy to be chosen to supply
the electronics for the large-scale roll-out of the
US electronic passport.”
Infineon supplies its secure identification chips to
more than 20 countries that have begun to use electronic
passports or have begun to test this technology, including
Germany, Hong Kong, Norway and Sweden. In addition,
Infineon provides the secure chips inside electronic
identity documents used in such countries as Italy,
Finland, the United Arab Emirates, Australia and Belgium,
and also for Hong Kong, as well as the chips used for
secure identification cards issued by the US Department
of Defense.
As a security measure, the US Congress passed legislation
requiring that countries participating in the US Visa
Waiver Program must issue passports with secure chip
technology by October 2006. Concurrently, the US adopted
this technology to conform to specifications for electronic
passports developed by the international standards body
for travel documents, the International Civil Aviation
Organization.
In the past ten years, the US has issued more than 67
million passports, which are valid for ten years from
date of issue. The US Government estimates that up to
15 million new passports will be issued in the first
full year of the electronic passport rollout –
which currently represents the single biggest electronic
passport project worldwide. Each new passport will contain
a chip, protected by shielding material, which contains
an encrypted copy of the printed information on the
passport – including the bearer’s name,
date of birth, validity period and a digital photo of
the individual. The digital photo allows the use of
facial recognition technology at border crossings to
authenticate the passport holder’s identity.
The electronic passport is designed with multiple layers
of security to protect the privacy of holders. This
includes Basic Access Control (BAC), which requires
the border control inspector to pass the document over
a scanner that reads coded information and then authorizes
the electronic reader to access the data stored on the
chip. The actual data transmission occurs over a distance
of about four inches (10 centimeters). In addition to
shielding and BAC, there are more than 50 individual
security mechanisms inside the Infineon chip, including
sophisticated computing methods for encrypting data,
to help ensure that personal data remains private. Security
mechanisms on the Infineon chips also include active
protective shields on the surface of the chip and sensors
that help prevent unauthorized people from being able
to read the contents of the chip.
Visit www.infineon.com
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