[Publib] ALA joins anti-National ID Campaign

[Don Wood]

ALA joins anti-National ID Campaign 
http://donwood.alablog.org/blog/_archives/2007/5/1/2918733.html

According to today's ALAWON, the American Library Association (ALA) has
joined a large and diverse group of 43 organizations to launch a
campaign against the first national identification system, REAL ID. The
groups joining in the anti-National ID campaign are concerned about the
increased threat of counterfeiting and identity theft, lack of security
to protect against unauthorized access to the document's machine
readable content, increased cost to taxpayers, diverting of state funds
intended for homeland security, increased costs for obtaining a license
or state issued ID card, and because the REAL ID would create a false
belief that it is secure and unforgeable. 

To voice your concerns, the draft regulations to implement the REAL ID
Act are open for comment until 5:00 p.m. EDT on May 8, 2007. Please take
action by submitting comments against the fundamentally flawed national
identification scheme, under Docket No. 2006-0030. To make comments go
to http://www.regulations.gov or send by fax to the Department of
Homeland Security (DHS): 1-866-466-5370. Be sure to include docket
number listed above.

For detailed instructions on using DHS’s public comment system and
information on the REAL ID Act, visit:
http://www.realnightmare.org/actioncenter/109.

"There are serious privacy and security issues with the REAL ID Act,"
said Loriene Roy, ALA President-Elect. "ALA has expressed deep concern
about standardized machine-readable driver's licenses and national
identification cards because of the potential privacy implications for
library users, as well as the increased potential for identity theft for
all individuals."

Under the REAL ID Act, states and federal government would share access
to a vast national database that could include images of birth
certificates, marriage licenses, divorce papers, and more, including
detailed information on the name, date of birth, race, and Social
Security Number for more than 240 million individuals, with no
requirements or controls on how this database might be used.