The Dutch Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) has announced the introduction of a new identity document for asylum seekers in the second half of 2025. Revealed at Identity Week in Amsterdam, the new ID card aligns with updated ICAO standards for vertically oriented identity cards. This layout allows for a significantly larger portrait image, improving manual identity verification by frontline officials.

The US Inland Revenue Service (IRS) has not been independently evaluating the digital identity proofing services provided by ID.me, its exclusive vendor for access to sensitive taxpayer services. A recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report found that the IRS is relying solely on ID.me’s internal performance assessments, with no external verification or established performance benchmarks.

The US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has issued a public reminder that retail membership cards — including those issued by Costco, a US-based warehouse club and wholesale retailer — do not constitute valid identity documents for use at airport security checkpoints.

A Korean technology startup has developed what is believed to be the world’s first smartphone-based solution capable of simultaneously capturing facial and fingerprint biometrics using the built-in front and rear cameras of a mobile device. The innovation, created by WINNING.I, enables fully contactless multimodal biometric authentication through a single application, removing the need for additional hardware or multi-step user procedures.

A recent online article from Maryia Valchanina, Head of Data Processing at Regula, sheds light on one of the lesser-discussed challenges in the field of document authentication: the verification of professional identity documents.

The future of ID cards, passports and driving licences is mobile. But the path to full digitisation still involves overcoming many challenges. At the heart of these challenges is the need to build trust with citizens.

It won’t come as a surprise to readers of ID & Secure Document News™ that the global digital identity market is entering a phase of accelerated growth, with spending projected to increase from $15.2 billion in 2024 to over $26 billion by 2029, according to Juniper Research.

In April 2025, the Republic of Suriname officially introduced its new ePassport, designed to meet international security and durability standards for travel documents. The project was delivered in partnership with OSD International, a global provider of secure identity solutions.

Following the ID4Africa 2024 AGM in Cape Town, Nicola Sudan from Reconnaissance interviewed Dr Joseph Atick, co-founder and Executive Chair of ID4Africa. The interview, for ID & Secure Document News™, covered a range of topics, including Dr Atick’s pioneering work in biometrics, the origins and growth of ID4Africa, the challenges and progress of digital identity systems across Africa, and the need for depoliticising identity programmes (see IDN November 2024).

The recent power blackout across the Iberian Peninsula gave a stark reminder that electricity powers our lives — and particularly our digital lives. Behind the headlines about the increased frequency of energy infrastructure failures lies a critical question for the industry: what happens to our digital identity systems when the power goes out?

Set in the historic and vibrant city of Warsaw, Poland (15-17 September), the Optical & Digital Document Security™ (ODDS) 2025 conference continues its mission of showcasing the most advanced research, innovation, and debate in the field of document protection.

In an article recently published in Securing Industry, Dr Mark Deakes, chair of the new International Optical Technologies Association (IOTA), sets out how optical technologies are spearheading efforts to protect identity documents.

Holographic features have long played a vital role in optical document security—grabbing attention, signaling authenticity, and giving visual verification. But as design trends shift and digital solutions take a larger role, it’s time to reassess their impact.

After nearly two decades of delays, the US is set to enforce the REAL ID Act on 7 May 2025. This legislation, passed in 2005 in response to the 9/11 Commission's recommendations, aims to standardise the issuance of state identification documents to enhance national security. However, its implementation has been fraught with challenges, including logistical hurdles, political resistance, and privacy concerns.

On 15 April, Peru’s National Registry of Identification and Civil Status (RENIEC) officially introduced the DNI 3.0 electronic national identity card.

Biometric authentication traditionally relies on single identifiers like fingerprints or facial scans. However, these can be spoofed or altered by ageing, injury, or illness.

The spotlight is on innovation for optical security features in ID and secure document protection, as entries open for the inaugural ‘Excellence in Optical Technologies Awards’.

The programme has been published for the High Security Printing™ (HSP) Latin America conference, which returns 9-11 June to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – the location for the inaugural event back in 2012.

During the lockdowns that typified the COVID pandemic, there was a roughly two-year period during which it was only under very special circumstances that a person could leave their house to visit a government office, a bank or cross a border. This accelerated the requirement for validating someone’s identity remotely. Of course, this ‘person-not-present’ form of ID authentication was prevalent and growing before 2020, but the pandemic accelerated its acceptance.

A significant shift is underway for Europe’s motorists, as the European Union advances plans to introduce digital driving licences. These mobile licences, accessible via smartphones, will complement traditional physical licences, offering a more flexible and interoperable identity solution across Europe.