      Business Editor : Eriq Dewanarayana |
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The ultimate secure card What is a Government's ideal National Identification or Driving License document? What Governments are really looking for is a completed document that is secure, durable, cost effective, holds a photo and provides a way of uniquely identifying an individual as the owner of the document. The document needs to be machine readable and is more desirable if it is simple to personalise with cheap personalisation devices. So far the response by the market to these needs has always been a compromise. Until now there has never been a product specifically developed for the Government market to meet these ends. In the Identification and Driving License markets today there are a number of different types of card material and personalisation techniques. Different materials and personalisation techniques vary in terms of durability and security. This paper will concentrate on the most popular materials and personalisation techniques. Today, the card materials that are used include PVC; which is the most popular card material for bank cards and Smart Cards; paper, polyester; polycarbonate which has been used in a few large scale identification schemes; Teslin and variants on PVC. A variant is where PVC is used as the base material with other materials such as polyester added to it. In a few cases materials such as polyester and ABS have been used. When personalising card materials one needs to use a means of personalising the card that gives an end result of a card that cannot be copies or altered. When an image and other data is added to the base card it needs to be done so that it works with the base design to provide a secure card. If the personalised data is written to a card so it can be altered without affecting the background security print then the card can never be totally secure. If we look at the different ways that print technologies write to cards we can see the problem. Laser engraving The materials that use Laser engraving are PVC and Polycarbonate. PVC become brittle in time and Polycarbonate is very expensive. Laser engraving is a compromise to the market needs. Laser printing The materials that use Laser printing are Paper and Teslin. Paper identification documents are often viewed as old fashioned and Teslin cards require a multi-stage production with lamination and cutting to size after printing which is not desirable. Again a laser printed solution never really meets the market need. D2T2 D2T2 personalisation is not appropriate for national identification or driving licenses. It's possible to remove and replace personalisation data without affecting the background design of the card how can this ever be used for documents of value like identification documents? Additionally it is well known that PVC card material simply does not last for the length of time that is needed in driving license schemes. Personalisation
for the future The Fortas personalisation technique worked by forcing the background security print and personalisation data to be absorbed into the card material. All data on the card penetrates through the surface of the card to a depth of around 50 microns. The result of this is that it is impossible to remove any data from the card without destroying it. Fortas - the most durable material in the card market De La Rue identity systems, one of the world's leading suppliers of national identification solutions, driving licence issuing schemes and passport issuing systems, today announces the launch of Fortas, a revolutionary new long-life card material and personalisation technique that will meet the unique specifications and requirements of government identity schemes worldwide. Fortas is the first card material and personalisation technique to be developed specifically for the government identification market. The new identity card brings together enhanced durability and security properties in a preconsolidated format that will exceed the ten year life expectancy requirements set in most government issuing schemes. Fortas is the most secure and durable card in the world. Fortas's four levels of security come from the personalisation method, traditional security print features, a unique tamper evident feature and a 2mm wide bank note style thread carrying a holographic image that is embedded in the card material. The tamper evident device shows any attempt to remove either the card's photograph or text by glowing brightly when exposed to an ultra violet (UV) light. The Fortas card is the most durable material on the card market. The finished Fortas cards conform to all ISO specifications and independent testing with other products in the market has shown them to be the most durable cards in existence. To meet the growing demand from governments to provide multi-function identification cards, De La Rue also brings its expertise in the smart card arena to the Fortas card. By introducing an integrated chip into the card material, several identification schemes such as national identification, driving licence and travel details can be combined securely and conveniently onto a single card. In a global Identification card market worth over £550 million per annum (US$ 880 million) this product puts De La Rue in a strong position to expand on the 40 countries where they have already installed identification or driving license programs. 'With counterfeit Identification documents worth over $5,000 each in one country today, and the desire of governments to provide multi function documents where all identification functions are combined on one card, the value of these documents will be much higher in the future. It is only through the use of highly secure and durable card materials and personalisation techniques that these documents will be safe from the counterfeiters'. Comments Humphrey Miller, Managing Director Identity Systems, De La Rue Card Systems Division. He adds 'By bringing together card material and personalisation data in a single stage process, we are able to offer an effective, and immediate solution to the production and issue of identification cards. This is of particular importance to Governments and issuing authorities who are looking to implement a secure, cost effective, distributed issuance scheme'. He also stated that, 'with users literally carrying their life on the card it is vital that their data is protected throughout the card circulation life. Our new card material has been designed to withstand the worst cases of wear and tear that a card can be put through, such as continuous flexing from being placed in a back pocket, surface damage from handbag contents, or exposure to extreme heat and light. The card's durable qualities will eliminate the need for frequent card replacement, benefiting both card users and Governments alike'. De La Rue identity systems responds to the needs of governments seeking skills services and products to implement secure document and card based identification, driving licenses, national registration, election and voting schemes as well as passport issuing and document reading systems. With forty years experience, its technical expertise is used by governments around the world and is reflected in its work with Interpol, the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and the United Nations. Pioneering new technologies from smart card applications through to document materials and biometrics, it is recognised for supplying quality innovation, integrity and above all, security. Emerging Need for Marketing Accountability The next evening meeting organised by the Sri Lanka Institute of Marketing is scheduled to be held on Wednesday 22nd July 1998 from 5.30 to 7.00 p.m. at the Earl's Court of the Trans Asia Hotel. The topic for discussion at this meeting is "The Emerging Need for Marketing Accountability". This topic was selected as being extremely relevant today since many companies are re-writing their business rules. Share holders are alert on how their monies are spent and Information Technology has revolutionized the way in which business is conducted. These changes exert considerable influence on the traditional marketing functions and a discussion on this topic is thought to be of great value to marketers. The guest speaker would be Mr. Hilmy Cader, Managing Director of Marketing Technologies International. Mr. Cader is a Fellow Graduate and Member of the Chartered Institute of Marketing (UK). He counts over eighteen years as a marketing practitioner with seven years in International Marketing as Area Director - South Asia and Middle East for Ralston Purina of USA and Regional Marketing Manager, Middle East, for the New Zealand Dairy Board.
The Central Bank's Spot Rates for transactions with Commercial Banks announced on the morning of July10, 1998 were as follows:
The approximate middle exchange rates of following currencies calculated on the basis of cross rates quoted by Gulf International Bank, Bahrain as it appeared in Reuters Financial Information System on July 10, 1998 were as follows:
Average rates at which the following currencies were quoted by Commercial Banks in Colombo for Telegraphic Transfers at mid-day on July 10, 1998 were as follows:
Average Weighted Prime Lending
Rate (AWRP) and Lowest Prime Rate (LPR) Average Weighted Deposit Rate
of Commercial Banks (AWDR)
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