The National Identity Register (NIR), containing the private and biometric details of British citizens, will become a prime target for organized crime, according to critics. British politicians are once again calling for assurances that fail-safe measures will be employed to protect the new database.
A home affairs spokesman for the Liberal Democrats has pointed out that organized crime groups will attempt to access the planned identity card database – the National Identity Register (NIR), silicon.com reports.
In one incident last year, which could almost be described as a precursor, the personal details of 13,000 civil servants were stolen and used to make fake tax credit claims. That case severely undermined the position of those backing the new identity cards, because, it was argued, if criminals are capable of infiltrating the Department for Work and Pensions, then the bigger and more detailed NIR database is bound to become a prime target for those attempting to carry out identity theft.
The UK government has stressed that the creation of the NIR and the issuing of personal ID cards will make fraud and identity theft virtually non-existent. However, one leak from the NIR database, which will also contain biometric data, could spell disaster for the whole system. A number of concerned politicians are now calling for another review of the security measures that will protect the private details contained in the NIR.
Source: Silicon.com
