ID cards will lead to 'massive fraud'

thanks to An Englishman's Castle this little nugget comes to light. Jerry Fishenden, the national technology officer for Microsoft says that ID cards will lead to 'massive fraud', which kind of kills off the governments last excuse for introducing ID Cards. The claim that it will help prevent ID theift does not really stack up when an independent expert starts saying that

Mr Fishenden says that, as no computer system is ever 100 per cent secure, "putting a comprehensive set of personal data in one place produces a honeypot effect - a highly attractive and richly rewarding target for criminals".

and

But the technology expert warns that holding these details in one place "is something that no technologist would ever recommend" and could leave individuals helpless if their details were compromised.

"Unlike other forms of information, such as credit card details, if core biometric details such as your fingerprints are compromised, it is not going to be possible to provide you with new ones," Mr Fishenden says. Using the same "identifiers" every time the ID card is presented is a "highly risky technical design" and could inadvertently broadcast personal information to fraudsters or private companies. Having to produce this much information for every service is "unnecessary" as systems could be designed to ensure that only the relevant data is revealed each time.

"Would you be happy if online auction sites, casinos or car rental company employees are given the same identity information that provides you with access to your medical records?" Mr Fishenden writes.

However it looks like New Labour is still going to vote it through.