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net.wars: ID cards update

This morning, just hours before the ID card goes to its second reading  in the  House of Lords sometime this afternoon, a research group from the London School of Economics released a  report (PDF) pointing out 75 key flaws in the government's proposals.

Flaws include conflicts with existing national and international laws in the areas of data protection and human rights, as well as laws intended to ease the free movement within the EU.

There is technological uncertainty because no biometric system on this sort of scale has ever been tried anywhere in the world. The report notes that the government's claim that biometrics will have to be included on passports in any case to comply with the requirements of the International Civil Aviation Organization is not quite correct: the ICAO requires a digital photograph, not a biometric facial scan.

Finally, the costs are likely to be far greater – and far more visible to individuals – than even the government's current estimates.

More in Friday's net.wars.