How Would ID Cards Improve This?

I’ve written before about the importance of verifying a person’s “role” rather than their “identity.”

Today, someone wearing a baseball cap arrived “to read the meter.” Although he wasn’t wearing the usual Siemens uniform or driving a Siemens van, he claimed to be from Siemens. Eventually, he agreed to show his ID but it was from a different company, with something about Siemens written on the back. He then tried to push past me into the house.

We’re warned that “bogus officials” are operating in our area and that we should check callers. Any genuine meter reader should know that in this street, the electricity meters are not actually inside the houses! Becoming ever more suspicious, I was about to ask for his “office phone number” but he made a hasty exit.

So, how would the government’s proposed ID card scheme help with this type of everyday need for individuals to check the credentials of “officials.”

- Would a biometric ID card help verify someone’s official “role” or would it only show their name?
- Would a biometric ID card be any use in this situation or would “officials” still need separate “credentials” issued by their employer or sponsor?
- How could any government ID scheme be adjusted to help with this?

Story continues…

After his hasty departure, I rang the electricity company. After the usual wait, the call centre agreed to contact Siemens: Getting no answer, they promised to phone back later.

Eventually, they phoned back and were adamant that they had no meter readers operating in the area. Because someone was apparently impersonating their staff, I asked them to contact the police: They refused and told me to contact the police myself. I phoned the police non-emergency number.

Some time later, there was another ring at the door: A young PCSO said that she had found the “meter-reader” and verified that he was actually genuine.

The PCSO didn’t proffer any ID but she was in uniform and equipped with all the usual items. (However, bogus police are also operating in our area!)

- Again: How would a standard biometric ID card help me to identify a “real” PCSO? Could it ever replace their “warrant card” - or whatever they carry?

Having thanked the PCSO and apologised, I phoned the electricity company again: The call centre contacted Siemens again and now said that meter readers were actually operating in my area!

Needless to say, the electricity company refused to contact the police to apologise for wasting their time, or to explain that I was not “crying wolf.”

Wibbis:

An increasing number of “officials” demand immediate entry to our homes and businesses – without prior appointment; criminals capitalise on this:

- Could “officialdom” devise a more foolproof mechanism so that we can verify these “officials”?

- Rather than spending vast amounts on an ID scheme which only identifies us to officials (something which we can already do perfectly adequately); wouldn’t it be better if the government produced a simple scheme which helped us to verify genuine “officials”?

Published by Richard S on 31/03/08 at 9:11pm

Comments

I agree - that’s absurd. In America I suppose you’d just shoot them and ask the questions later.

I suppose they could email or text you in advance? Or is that too simple?

Reply by on 03/31/08 at 11:00 pm
An ID *CARD* would be no help at all. If, however, we were a little more enlightened and embedded a certificate in a mobile phone that was also equipped with a biometric reader (already available and not unreasonably expensive) then the meter reader could verify to his/her phone; the phone uses NFC to verify with the householder’s; and the householder’s phone checks the verification with the authorised agent. Sounds complex, but is in fact very simple to do.

Our problem here is that we’re hanging onto a dogma that it needs to be a piece of plastic as the token, rather than an embedded certificate…

Reply by Toby Stevens on 04/01/08 at 8:06 am
I have always believed that the minimum first rule in any proposal for an ID card is that those who wish to identify must first be identified

Reply by Tim Conway on 04/02/08 at 8:51 pm
The ID Crud scheme does not allow individuals to check the credentials of officials - it is entirely for officials checking the credentials of individuals.

Reply by ukliberty on 04/04/08 at 10:42 am

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