Chip-enabled identity cards with enhanced security key to fighting identity fraud

The Philippines must transition to chip-enabled identity cards to effectively fight identity fraud amid the advent of generative artificial intelligence (AI), which has allowed perpetrators to scale attacks to an unprecedented degree, according to UK-based biometric specialist iProov.

“If you’re introducing a new type of identity card, ensure it has a chip-enabled card that can be verified electronically. That, combined with e-verify.gov.ph, gives you a really, really high level of assurance it’s the right person,” said Milko Radotic, vice president for Asia Pacific at iProov, in an interview.

Mr. Radotic noted that document-related fraud is one of the most prevalent forms of identity fraud in the country, partly due to the lack of embedded chips in common IDs—unlike the secure electronic chips, usually found in passports.

IProov said that at least US $23 billion is the projected loss in 2030 due to synthetic identity fraud in United States alone, citing the report of Delight Insights Report in 2023.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), for instance, currently accepts around 30 different valid identity documents for opening a bank account, but very few of them have secure electronic chips.

“If you want to open up a bank account remotely from your couch, you can do that,” Mr. Radotic said. “You can use any one of these 31 documents. Some of them are more secure than others. So therefore, the level of trust that you can put into the document is a challenge.”

According to the Secure Technology Alliance, smart ID cards with embedded chips or RFID technology strengthen identity security by securely storing and protecting personal data, supporting trusted authentication, and helping prevent alteration, cloning, or unauthorized access to identity records.

It added that chip-based IDs also enable stronger verification processes, allowing institutions to confirm identities electronically and detect fraudulent or altered credentials more efficiently.

Various agencies have started to adopt more secure digital identity systems recently in the Philippines, such as the Digital National ID and its authentication platforms National ID eVerify and National ID Check launched in June 2024.

The unified Person with Disability (PWD) ID system with RFID technology also had a pilot rollout last year to curb fake cards and improve verification.

Mr. Radotic expressed appreciation for the government’s initiatives to combat identity fraud, noting that with over 92 million Filipinos already enrolled in the Philippine Identification System (Philsys) platforms like e-verify.gov.ph and eGov.ph now allow organizations to verify the “source” of a document directly against a trusted official database. — Edg Adrian A. Eva