DHS Tests RFID Passports At San Francisco Airport

[question everything]

December 30, 2005

DHS Tests RFID Passports At San Francisco Airport

By Laurie Sullivan Courtesy of TechWeb News

The Department of Homeland Security will begin testing passports embedded with radio frequency identification (RFID) technology at the San Francisco International Airport mid-January, a spokesperson for the agency said Friday.

Australia, New Zealand and Singapore have begun to issue passports to travelers with RFID chips. Many pass through the San Francisco, making it a likely location to test the technology, according to Anna Hinken, a US-Visit spokesperson at the Department of Homeland Security. "We're bringing technology to the borders and chose RFID as one to help reach the goals of expediting safe entrance into the United States," she said.

In October, the U.S. State Department issued final regulations on passports issued after October 2006, stating all would have embedded RFID chips that carry the holder's personal data and digital photo. Specifications for the passports were developed by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a United Nations agency.

San Francisco is not the first major U.S. city to trial the technology. Through the US-Visit program, the DHS ran a three month test with RFID-embedded e-passports in fall 2005 at the Los Angeles International Airport. Other RFID projects have been in the works, too.

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http://www.developerpipeline.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleId=175800379

[AlCzervik]

1. my daughter and i just applied for passports, the postal worker told us

we "may" end up with this chip in our passports.