Identifying Citizens (PDF)

New ID card systems are proliferating around the world. These may
use digitized fingerprints or photos, may be contactless, using a
scanner, and above all, may rely on computerized registries of
personal information. In this timely new contribution, David Lyon
argues that such IDs represent a fresh phase in the long-term
attempts of modern states to find stable ways of identifying
citizens.

New ID systems are "new" because they are high-tech.
But their newness is also seen crucially in the ways that they
contribute to new means of governance. The rise of e-Government and
global mobility along with the aftermath of 9/11 and fears of
identity theft are propelling the trend towards new ID systems.
This is further lubricated by high technology companies seeking
lucrative procurements, giving stakes in identification practices
to agencies additional to nation-states, particularly technical and
commercial ones. While the claims made for new IDs focus on
security, efficiency and convenience, each proposal is also
controversial. Fears of privacy-loss, limits to liberty, government
control, and even of totalitarian tendencies are expressed by
critics.

This book takes an historical, comparative and sociological look
at citizen-identification, and new ID cards in particular. It
concludes that their widespread use is both likely and, without
some strong safeguards, troublesome, though not necessarily for the
reasons most popularly proposed. Arguing that new IDs demand new
approaches to identification practices given their potential for
undermining trust and contributing to social exclusion, David Lyon
provides the clearest overview of this topical area to date.