The Enhanced Driver's License: Collateral Gains or Collateral Damage?
Abstract
On a day-to-day basis, "security" to most Americans means proving their identity by producing a valid government-issued identification document (ID) -- most commonly a driver's license. For this reason, the 9/11 terrorists placed a high value on driver's licenses as a means to mask the preparatory activities leading up to their attack. Congress, as a result, enacted several measures to increase homeland security, including the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI), which was adopted on June 1, 2009. The WHTI requires all citizens to show proof of identity while crossing U.S. land, sea, and some air borders between Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda. To facilitate the initiative, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) expanded on such ID programs as NEXUS, FAST, and SENTRI. DHS also adopted a number of new ID solutions, including passport card (PASS Card), the Enhanced Driver's License (EDL), Global Entry, and the Enhanced Tribal Card. All WHTI IDs employ vicinity-read radio frequency identification (RFID) technology, which has raised privacy concerns. This thesis seeks to join the ongoing civil liberties vs. national security debate through a case study of the EDL on both technological and legal grounds.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 2012
- Accession Number
- ADA574068
Entities
People
- James M. Clark
Organizations
- Naval Postgraduate School