NEWS & PUBLICATIONS

In a fragile state, the identity system isn’t broken. It was never built.

In a fragile state, the identity system isn’t broken. It was never built. International best practice assumes a functioning civil registration system, a reliable chain of custody for foundational documents, trained personnel, stable institutions, and continuous power supply. In fragile and post-conflict environments, none of these assumptions hold. Design for the context you find. Not the context you wish existed.

15 hours ago2 min read

The identity modernisation market is booming. The question is who’s buying — and whether they know what they’re getting.

Automation without institutional readiness is not modernisation. It is automation of an existing vulnerability

4 days ago2 min read

The biometric scanner works perfectly in the lab. In the field, there's no power, no connectivity, and no shade.

Design your biometric strategy from the field backward. not from the datasheet forward.

6 days ago1 min read

“ICAO compliant” is the most overused — and least understood — claim in the secure document industry.

“ICAO compliant” may be the most overused — and least understood — claim in the industry.

Apr 162 min read

Borders must be both secure and humane. The document framework for achieving both is under review.

The answer is not to choose between security and humanity. It is to build systems that serve both.

Apr 142 min read

Complex advisory doesn’t fail in the analysis. It fails in the setup.

The most valuable document in any advisory engagement is the one written before the work begins

Apr 92 min read

Country A captures a fingerprint. Country B can’t read it. The biometric border just became a wall.

A biometric system that cannot interoperate is not a security system. It is an expensive database.

Apr 72 min read

The most expensive line in a national ID tender isn’t a price. It’s an ambiguous requirement.

Who wrote your last national ID specification — and whose interests did it protect?

Apr 22 min read

The most common failure in government advisory isn’t a bad recommendation. It’s a good recommendation that surprises the wrong person.

A good recommendation that surprises the wrong person is a failed recommendation.

Mar 311 min read

The European Digital Identity Wallet is the most ambitious identity project the EU has ever launched.

The wallet will only be as trusted as the standards behind it.

Mar 262 min read

Every failed identity programme had a plan. What it didn’t have was boundaries.

Before a single interview is conducted or a single document reviewed, the most important decision in any identity programme advisory engagement has already been made — or hasn’t. That decision is scope. How many institutions will be assessed? How many site visits conducted? What grade of detail is expected in the analysis? What volume of documents will be reviewed? These are not administrative details. They are the boundaries that determine whether the project delivers insigh

Mar 242 min read

Nobody reads your 500-page system documentation. That’s not a filing problem. It’s a project risk.

If your system documentation can't be read in an afternoon, it won't be read at all.

Mar 192 min read

The birth certificate is the most dangerous document in your identity system.

Mar 172 min read

Important Deadlines for Issuers and Producers of ePassports and Systems

Important deadlines for Issuers and producers of ICAO ePassports and Systems

Jun 25, 20252 min read

New Guide on use of Biometrics

An Introductory Guide on Biometrics has been released by IOM for personnel working in humanitarian settings who are dealing with the...

Oct 1, 20243 min read

Standardization of Breeder Documents - Part 3 "Trustframework and Policy"

By Stephan D. Hofstetter, Editor CEN prTS 17489-5, Delegated Expert SNV, Managing Partner SECOIA Executive Consultants AG This topic will...

Mar 28, 20247 min read

Standardization of Breeder Documents - Part 2 "The standardization effort"

By Stephan D. Hofstetter, Editor CEN prTS 17489-5, Delegated Expert SNV, Managing Partner SECOIA Executive Consultants AG This topic will...

Mar 22, 20245 min read

Standardization of Breeder Documents - Part 1 "Setting the scene"

By Stephan D. Hofstetter, Editor CEN prTS 17489-5, Delegated Expert SNV, Managing Partner SECOIA Executive Consultants AG This topic will...

Mar 15, 20246 min read

Procurement of Passport & ID Systems

Procurement of Passport & ID Systems is a challenge. Not only the requirements and technology management: Budgets are tight for various...

Oct 2, 20231 min read

Is low-price evaluation secure?

Two recent events inspired this article: In August 2023, SDN published an article with the same title. And SECOIA's procurement...

Aug 9, 20234 min read

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