In reviewing MSNBC's Privacy Lost, we continue with part four of the segment. This segment discusses the Real ID Act and the effect it will have when it goes into effect. At the time of the article it was scheduled to go into effect in 2008, but now has been pushed back to 2011. The article also present something I found very interesting, an interactive chart with high-tech methods for identification and some of the privacy risks associated with each.
The Real ID Act sets up a national ID system by having modern high-tech standards for driver's licenses and ID cards. The government feels this is the best way to identity people, whether it is at U.S. borders or at the DMV. In addition to the standard information found on an ID card (name, gender, address, birth date, and digital photo), physical security features will be used and will also vary by state. These will be used to prevent fraud and have the ability to be accessed by "machine-readable technology," which includes RFID chips and other such technology. With the Real ID Act, states are required to verify identities. These records must then stay on file for 10 years with open access to any other state searching for information. In a nutshell, as much information as humanly possible will be retained by your ID and anyone that is able to buy, sell, or hack the information can know way too much about you.
The article continues to discuss other ID management initiatives and the privacy risks associated with them. Some of these include high-tech passports and the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, which increased ID requirements when travelling from the U.S. to other countries in the region. All these measures can be used to increase the government's ability to track us. And to add more fuel to the fire, all these methods will be giving out some sort of signal...which any hacker can intercept and potentially use to gain information.
The third page of the article discusses hackers and even some security experts who have been able to work their magic, so to speak, and turn Real ID into a better method of obtaining personal information. Advocates of Real ID played this off as a "media stunt." The article finished up by discussing how technology is dynamic, not static so the issues they are trying to thwart are ones from the past.
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