PA Consulting

[ratewhore]

We proles will be terminated once we’ve been used up; typically about forty years of age.

Shades of Logans Run. Do I get to shag Jenny Agutter?

[Clippy]

Its amazing, that in this day an age companies are still transferring data on unencrypted media. Especially so called consulting companies.

There are no excuses.

Agreed.

My current gig uses IronKey USB memory sticks as standard.

[Peoplesoft bloke]

For god’s sake, what is it you luddites are scared of about ID cards?

You can get more information off your driving licence.

The whole point about ID cards is that passports and licences are not compulsory. The card will simply be a way to prove who you are. Not everyone has a passport and not everyone has a driving licence.

By making ID cards compulsory then police can confirm who you are, Hospitals can confirm you are not a 'health' tourist, Employment agencies can confirm you have right to work, Benefit agencies can ascertain you're entitled to benefits, etc.

As for applying for an ID card, it'll be done in the same manner as applying for a first time passport and there is no new database, they've amended the proposals to utilise the databases of the other agencies, i.e. the passport service.

The reason why I'm so for it is from November 2008, all foreign nationals will have to apply for "biometric residence permits" or "biometric visas" and their details will be entered into the national identity database. The government also wants all foreign nationals living in the UK to have identity cards and will make anyone applying to extend their stay register biometric details, from November 2008. The aim is that 90% of foreign nationals in the UK will have ID cards by 2015.

First step at putting British borders back in place.

I am not a Luddite (although you clearly don't know much about them if you use it as a way of sneering at people).

I am not scared of ID cards - I am fundamentally opposed - there is a big difference.

You haven't really thought about how all this will work in practice, just like the government.

[Clippy]

For god’s sake, what is it you luddites are scared of about ID cards?

You can get more information off your driving licence.

The whole point about ID cards is that passports and licences are not compulsory. The card will simply be a way to prove who you are. Not everyone has a passport and not everyone has a driving licence.

By making ID cards compulsory then police can confirm who you are, Hospitals can confirm you are not a 'health' tourist, Employment agencies can confirm you have right to work, Benefit agencies can ascertain you're entitled to benefits, etc.

As for applying for an ID card, it'll be done in the same manner as applying for a first time passport and there is no new database, they've amended the proposals to utilise the databases of the other agencies, i.e. the passport service.

The reason why I'm so for it is from November 2008, all foreign nationals will have to apply for "biometric residence permits" or "biometric visas" and their details will be entered into the national identity database. The government also wants all foreign nationals living in the UK to have identity cards and will make anyone applying to extend their stay register biometric details, from November 2008. The aim is that 90% of foreign nationals in the UK will have ID cards by 2015.

First step at putting British borders back in place.

Please provide an example of a country with an ID card scheme that has also directly resulted in their 'borders being put back in place'.

[Bob Dalek]

For god’s sake, what is it you luddites are scared of about ID cards?

You can get more information off your driving licence.

The whole point about ID cards is that passports and licences are not compulsory. The card will simply be a way to prove who you are. Not everyone has a passport and not everyone has a driving licence.

By making ID cards compulsory then police can confirm who you are, Hospitals can confirm you are not a 'health' tourist, Employment agencies can confirm you have right to work, Benefit agencies can ascertain you're entitled to benefits, etc.

As for applying for an ID card, it'll be done in the same manner as applying for a first time passport and there is no new database, they've amended the proposals to utilise the databases of the other agencies, i.e. the passport service.

The reason why I'm so for it is from November 2008, all foreign nationals will have to apply for "biometric residence permits" or "biometric visas" and their details will be entered into the national identity database. The government also wants all foreign nationals living in the UK to have identity cards and will make anyone applying to extend their stay register biometric details, from November 2008. The aim is that 90% of foreign nationals in the UK will have ID cards by 2015.

First step at putting British borders back in place.

Place your bets, mesdames, monsieurs! How long will it take naughty types to clone, create and make naughty use of UK ID cards?

The house opens with 3 months.

[DaveB]

Place your bets, mesdames, monsieurs! How long will it take naughty types to clone, create and make naughty use of UK ID cards?

The house opens with 3 months.

Sounds about right although I don't think they will bother. The ID card itself is not the weakpoint, the process by which you obtain one is.

In order to get an ID card you need to prove who you are. Since all current forms of identity are fakeable without excessive effort or cost you simply fake the ID you need to get the ID card and bingo, you have a genuine, uncontestable, government approved ID that no-one can challenge.

Government so far have been remarkable reticent to actually answer questions about how one might go about getting an ID card and what documentation is required to do so. I suspect this is the reason.

[Kess]

I have no problem with ID cards as such, but they should never be treated as infallible. One thing that makes me nervous about biometric ID cards is the Government acts as though biometrics are 100% perfect and foolproof (probably because they've been told that by various companies and consultants who are, of course, completely honest and unbiased).

I can picture HMG throwing huge sums of our money at this wizz-bang technology and its promoters, only for some spoilsport scientist to then come along and crack it (like the researchers who recently showed how it was possible to reverse-engineer fingerprints from "secure" biometric fingerprint data, something that was meant to be impossible).

And, as this latest lost data incident shows, simple human error can always undermine any fancy technology.

[Bob Dalek]

Sounds about right although I don't think they will bother. The ID card itself is not the weakpoint, the process by which you obtain one is.

In order to get an ID card you need to prove who you are. Since all current forms of identity are fakeable without excessive effort or cost you simply fake the ID you need to get the ID card and bingo, you have a genuine, uncontestable, government approved ID that no-one can challenge.

Government so far have been remarkable reticent to actually answer questions about how one might go about getting an ID card and what documentation is required to do so. I suspect this is the reason.

Agreed. They're already worthless.

[Peoplesoft bloke]

I have no problem with ID cards as such, but they should never be treated as infallible. ......

Ahem - if they are supposed to be to "prove who you are" then they are pointless unless they are infallible. Hence, they are pointless (although that's not my only reason for opposing them).

[DaveB]

And, as this latest lost data incident shows, simple human error can always undermine any fancy technology.

In every case where data has been lost like this it has been people who have been at fault, not technology. Yes the data could have been encrypted, but that wont stop it being lost in the first place, it just mitigates the damage done if it is.

This a the fundamental principle of Data Security, Information Assurance, whatever you want to call it.

Technology is not the problem, people are the problem.