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National E-ID - Experts Worry Over Data Theft(AllAfrica Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Some experts have expressed concern over the security of data in the National Electronic Identity Card which the Federal Government launched last week. The experts, who spoke to Daily Trust, said the likelihood of sharing the data of Nigerians with American firm MasterCard can lead to security breach. MasterCard is involved with the e-ID project, and its logo is embossed on the back of the card. The e-ID card is expected to replace national drivers' licence, voters card, pension cards and for can be used for other social security purposes. Sadiq Abubakar, an Abuja-based payment card expert, said converting the national ID into a payment card "doesn't make sense because of the security and economic implications of such process." He added: "I don't need to use my national ID at ATM every day, it doesn't make sense. Secondly, a payment card has an expiry date, if you check your cards, you will see an expiry date on it for security reasons. "Thirdly, payment cards can wear out, does it mean that if that happens I have to go back and get another one? "It is also a smart card and a smart card has a computer attached to it, so, in this case, an international organisation like MasterCard has access to our data and they can do anything with it; they can trace you wherever you are. It has serious security and privacy implications." "I wouldn't like my ATM cards and my ID card to be connected because it means that, every single move I make I can be watched by some body. So if it is an ID card, let it be an ID card, if you want a payment card, apply for it," Abubakar also said. He explained that: "If you go to the United States your social security number/card is not connected to any payment platform, and they will not dare to do that because of security issues. So I don't subscribe to it." Another expert, Mohammed C. Garba, Managing Partner Chips and System Solutions Ltd, advised people to be very careful with their passwords and PIN number. He said the only country that tried such process was Australia, which is far away from Nigeria in terms of data security, adding that, in a country like ours, the programme needs to be well managed. "It should be remembered that when the ATM was newly introduced, people were duplicating cards and stealing data from ATM points," he said. Reacting to some of the concerns about the e-ID, Mr Tunji Durodola, Head, Card Management Services, National Identity Management Commission, said yesterday that the card has about five applets and MasterCard is providing functionality for only one of the five applets. "In the first phase, MasterCard is offering payment functionality for the card. There is a firewall between this applet and all the other applets so not even a Point of Sale (POS) terminal can access the secure data protected on certain parts of the card. "As stated earlier, the National Database is not the business of MasterCard and will never be. Later on, we will have Visa and Verve Cards as alternatives to MasterCard. MasterCard will only be available on the first 13 million cards." He said the fears being expressed that the MasterCard or the United States Government can tamper with the infrastructure is highly unlikely, adding that in the event that Nigeria has any problem with the US government, similar to the issue with Russia, the only part of the entire card that can be shut down is the payment applet. This applet is only 1 of 13 on the card. It has absolutely nothing to do with the ePKI, eID, MoC, Tax, Voter, Travel, Health or other applets." Copyright Daily Trust. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). |