|
"Surveillance Society" Fears over Id Card Plans By By Gavin Cordon 6/27/05 |
In the near future, identity cards might be used terrorism deterrent. The Government’s plans for national identity cards were today condemned as “excessive and disproportionate” by the official data protection watchdog.
Information Commissioner Richard Thomas warned that the cards – backed by a comprehensive
National Identity Register – could become part of a new “surveillance society.”
In a position paper issued on the eve of the Second Reading debate on the Identity Card Bill in the House of Commons, he urged MPs to consider the impact of the Government recording so many personal details of its citizens' lives.
Mr. Thomas said that he believed that once a person’s identity had been established and a card issued, there was “little justification” for retaining all their details – including a record of their “biometric” features – in the
National Identity Card Register.
And he expressed “serious concerns” over the way that the cards would, through the recording of the various checks carried out, enable the state to build up a detailed “data trail” of people’s activities.
“The Government has made clear that the system of operation it favors involves checks by service providers back to the National Identity Register, thus building up a picture of an individual’s card use and a detailed picture of how they live their lives.”
And he expressed “serious concerns” over the way that the cards would, through the recording of the various checks carried out, enable the state to build up a detailed “data trail” of people’s activities.
“The Government has made clear that the system of operation it favors involves checks by service providers back to the National Identity Register, thus building up a picture of an individual’s card use and a detailed picture of how they live their lives.”
“The Information Commissioner is concerned that each development puts in place another component in the infrastructure of a ‘surveillance society’,” the paper said. Source: scotsman.com
|
