ID cards may carry fingerprint data

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Residents in Shenyang, capital of Northeast China's Liaoning province, look at templates of the second generation ID card during their visit to the provincial public security department on March 23. [Photo by Zhang Wenkui/Xinhua]

China's top legislature on Monday began to review a draft amendment to the Resident Identity Card Law, which requires fingerprints be added to people's resident identity cards in a bid to combat counterfeiting.

Fingerprints would make it easier to identify the cardholder and allow the card to be used across a range of areas, including banking, education, transport and medical, Yang Huanning, vice-minister of public security, said on Monday while explaining the draft to the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee.

Each citizen above the age of 16 is required to carry an identity card and the Ministry of Public Security is responsible for the cards.

China launched its first version of resident identity cards in 1985, but these could easily be counterfeited or used in crimes.

In 2004, the country introduced a second version. By 2010, 1.04 billion people nationwide had received the second version of identity cards.

According to the Resident Identity Card Law, the first version of identity cards can still be used as long as they have not expired, but the draft prohibits the use of them from Jan. 1, 2013.

The draft requires people to offer their fingerprint information when they apply for, change or register their ID cards in the future.

Lawmakers expressed their support for the change while reviewing the draft amendment on Monday, saying that the proposed change was necessary in the digital and information age.

Li Xiao'ou, a bank worker in Beijing, said fingerprint data will make bank transactions safer.

"The fingerprint is a feature unique to each individual," he said. "The new card can better protect their private information and prevent their identity from being used by others when people want to do banking."

However, Li Chenguang, a manager at a Beijing branch of China Telecom, said cards with fingerprint data will cost more and may not be very helpful in telecom transactions.

But Dai Peng, a professor at the Chinese People's Public Security University, said that the benefits far outweigh the costs.

"It'll also be effective for public security organs who can establish a fingerprint database," he said, adding that the fingerprint information will help the fight against crime.

Zhu Qi, a member of the NPC Standing Committee, also said that people must have the same type of ID card and whatever card is issued it must be uniform and the same for everyone.

Legislators must take this into account, he said.

The NPC's bimonthly session is scheduled to be held from Oct. 24 to 29.

(China Daily contributed to this story)