• Police To Get Oz Smartcard Data

    From Steve Asher@3:800/432 to All on Saturday, April 29, 2006 02:01:08
    The proposed Australian health and welfare card isn't an ID
    card, and will not be compulsory, but it will be necessary
    for access to Government services and benefits, and the data
    will be available to police and intelligence services - in
    effect, an identity card by function, even if not by name.

    =============================================================

    Police to get smartcard data

    James Riley and Simon Kearney
    APRIL 28, 2006

    INTELLIGENCE agencies and police will be given access to a vast
    database of "biometric" photographs of Australians to be created
    for the new health and welfare smart card to fight terrorism and
    more general crime.

    ASIO and the Federal Police will be allowed routine access to the
    smart card database on national security issues, while state police
    will have restricted access for general crime investigations.

    The Prime Minister said this week government would proceed with a $1
    billion plan to issue Australians with a health and welfare smart
    card, but ruled out developing a compulsory national ID scheme.

    The card would have a highly accurate photograph, with the detailed
    information about the person's face recorded on the computer chip
    embedded in the card.

    The photo and the chip would be checked against a central government
    database.

    [...]

    The identity database attached to the smart card plan will include sophisticated face-recognition software that will let law enforcement
    agencies quickly identify from photographs or closed circuit
    television pictures the name and address of suspects.

    Called the Secure Common Registration System, the identity will also
    be used by other departments - like Immigration - to avoid mistaken
    identity problems highlighted by the Cornelia Rau and Vivian Alvarez
    cases.

    Human Services Minister Joe Hockey defended giving intelligence
    agencies and police access to system.

    "The government will do whatever it takes in terms of protecting the
    national interest and protecting individual interests from terrorism."

    [...]

    Full article at "Australian IT" ....
    http://australianit.news.com.au/articles/ 0,7204,18956304%5E15306%5E%5Enbv%5E,00. html


    Cheers, Steve..

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    * Origin: Xaragmata / Adelaide SA telnet://xaragmata.thebbs.org (3:800/432)