The Smart Card Alliance Contactless and Mobile Payments Council announced that it will focus on educating the public on the security benefits of chip card technology and how it can possibly reduce fraud in the U.S. The council also announced its new officers and steering committee. The council’s recent educational efforts included support for a […]

The FBI is searching driver license databases using facial recognition technology, according to an Associated Press news report. In North Carolina the technology was used to catch a double-murder suspect. The FBI learned the suspect was in North Carolina, took a 1991 booking photo and then compared it with 30 million photos stored by the […]

Visa Canada has chosen the winter Olympic Games, taking place next February and March in Vancouver, to shine the spotlight on its contactless debit card. Visa is a major sponsor of the games and its credit, debit and prepaid cards will be the only ones accepted at Olympic venues. “There’s an opportunity for Canada to […]

Jay H. Walder, the new chairman and CEO of New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the man credited with creating London’s popular Oyster card, is promising a 100-day action plan and indicated eventual implementation of “modern fare technology.” He stressed the need for the MTA to deliver on its commitments, show taxpayers good value and […]

TSA, vendors deflect blame for past failures By Zack Martin, Editor, Avisian Publications There are many opinions as to why registered traveler programs at more than 20 airports across the country failed, but nobody is stepping up to take the blame quite yet. Fingers were pointing between the Transportation Security Administration and the vendors who […]

Helveta, a British company that provides RFID tracking solutions for the timber and food production industries, has just completed a project in Malaysia using RFID and its CI World software platform to monitor timber production in Malaysia’s Terengganu province. The project involved forest officers taking inventory of the designated 129,143 hectare plot and tagging all […]

Omani citizens have started activating the e-purse application in their electronic ID cards which enables them to pay for administrative fees, such as birth and marriage certificates, car registration, driver licenses and visa applications. They can also reload their mobile phone prepaid subscription and make purchases at supermarkets. In the future, the ePurse application will […]

West Virginia University has received $5 million in funding for its biometrics and forensics program, according to a Times West Virginia article. All of the money coming in to the programs have been awarded as grants from different government agencies for the work its department has been doing. The first two grants are FBI grants […]

The Smart Card Alliance Identity Council will turn its attention to cybersecurity and health care identity in the upcoming year, while continuing its work to educate and make identity credentialing recommendations for corporate enterprise, health care, state and local governments. The Identity Council also announced new officers and steering committee, and plans to attend the […]

Law enforcement officials in the U.S. have begun utilizing a device called a SCRAM anklet to keep those on alcohol related probation from drinking by tracking the alcohol in their sweat, according to an MSNBC article. While the device is a potential life saver for the wearers and an effective tool for police and the […]