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A piece of identification (ID) is a document designed to verify aspects of a person's identity. It is also called an identity document or, if in the form of a small standard-sized card, an identity card (IC). Information present on the document — or in a supporting database — might include the bearer's full name, a portrait photo, age, birth date, address, an identification number, profession or rank, religion, ethnic or racial classification, restrictions, and citizenship status. New technologies could allow identity cards to contain biometric information, such as photographs, face, hand or iris measurements, or fingerprints. Electronic identity cards or e-IDs are already available in some territories such as Hong Kong, Malaysia, Estonia, Finland, Belgium, Portugal and Spain. Morocco is also planning to launch a new identity card of biometric type by January 2007. Their use is backed by law enforcement officials who claim that it can make surveillance and identification of criminals much easier. However, concern is also expressed about the extensive cost and potential abuse of hi-tech smartcards. In the United Kingdom and the United States especially, government-issued compulsory identity cards or, to be more precise, their centralised database are a source of debate as they are regarded as an infringement of privacy and civil liberties. Most criticism is directed towards the enhanced possibilities of extensive abuse of centralised and comprehensive databases storing sensitive data. A 2006 survey of UK Open University students concluded that the planned compulsory identity card coupled with a central government database generated the most negative attitudinal response among several alternative configurations.[1]
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