The recently passed REAL ID Act provides for uniform standards in state-issued driver licenses, effectively making them a national ID card.
A number of proposals have been made in Congress related to immigration and identification documents, according to the Congressional Research Service. These proposals come in the wake of the 9/11 Commission’s report to Congress.
The REAL ID act would repeal provisions previously passed in the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, where those provisions could overlap or conflict. The latter act already allows the Secretary of Transportation, in consultation with the Director of Homeland Security, to issue regulations concerning minimum standards for drivers’ licenses and ID cards.
The section that should generate concern in the wake of numerous security breaches at companies handling personal data would be Section 203 of the Act. That Section, called Linking of Databases, makes the following provision:
(A) State shall participate in the interstate compact regarding sharing of driver license data, known as the `Driver License Agreement’, in order to provide electronic access by a State to information contained in the motor vehicle databases of all other States.
An analysis of the Act provided by esteemed security technologist Bruce Schneier details some of the problems with it.
“REAL ID requires that driver’s licenses contain actual addresses, and no post office boxes. There are no exceptions made for judges or police — even undercover police officers. This seems like a major unnecessary security risk,” says Mr. Schneier.
David Utter is a staff writer for Murdok covering technology and business. Email him here.
