Even for biometric documents, often times when you read them using an NFC-based app, the ‘digital signature’ may appear to your smartphone as “invalid” or having been issued by an “unrecognised entity.” Often times, there could be a simple explanation for this happening, such as your device not having the (public key) certificates of the issuing country installed (more on this below). A simple spelling error in someone’s name, a partial impression of a rubber stamp on someone’s photo (where it doesn’t belong) or a smudged MRZ could be mere clerical or mechanical mistakes on the issuing agency’s part and not a deliberate forgery. You can see how this can get tedious.īottomline being, always look for hardcore signs of fake which can irrefutably be proved beyond doubt.
After all, maybe the document was issued under the older design specifications of a country? Or the document is of special class (diplomatic vs. In case of documents, however, there is a thin line: there are so many inconsistencies - including the ever-changing “design templates” issued every few years by every jurisdiction (country, state, locality) that it is hard to irrefutably conclude if a sophisticated fake is indeed a fake, even for experts. No, I’m not saying this is why profiling happens, but for levity’s sake, at least I may be able to share some useful knowledge on the subject rather than bantering about issues which may be hard to convince some people of.Īs with anything in security - whether in a physical or digital context, one may be able to tell when something is obviously missing or insecure, but one can almost never rule out something being totally secure, or in this context, legitimate either.
I noticed what these “security experts” were looking for - notably in my documents and thought of sharing some useful tips and techniques to my techie audience with regards to telling a fake from a real one. Airline staff should have no business asking the most intimate questions as long as I have valid documents. Strangely, this also seems to happen almost every time, not by just the border agents of a country, but also the local transport police and even airline staff - yes, I wrote to Lufthansa about it. I’m so used to getting profiled at the airports and train stations now - it feels not much different from a stranger asking you, “what time is it?” - oh the joys of living in this world. It’s been travel season and you might be wondering what goes behind the scenes when you hand over your passport or ID cards to authorities at different stages of your travel: exit controls, boarding, passport control, customs…. A Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) as issued by Home Office, UK
0 kommentar(er)
