On the first of October 2006, the paper driver’s license got replaced by a plastic card in the Netherlands. Main reason for the replacement: better security against fraud and forgery. Besides, the Netherlands was following other EU-countries, and in this way all the identity documents could be produced at one single factory. Fourteen years after the launch of the plastic card, the card will be unnecessary, since the RDW (Dienst Wegverkeer – ‘department road traffic’) is planning on developing an app for your driver’s license in 2020.
In a few years, the app should function as a replacement of the plastic card and serve as legal identification, according to the RDW. Next to this ambitious goal, not much is clear about the way the app will work, the RDW itself doesn’t even know how it will work. May be it won’t be an app, but another method with a smartphone. The core will be ‘Remote Document Authentification’, a method that is already tested on another project: Idensys. With this method, smartphones can read data from the current plastic driver’s license which are produced after the end of 2014. These driver’s licenses contain a chip from the Dutch company Gemalto. The RDW states that the option for a plastic card will remain, as not everyone has a smartphone.
One of the reasons for digitalizing the driver’s license is efficiency. For example, it won’t be necessary to renew your driver’s license every ten years. Personally, I doubt if the improvement in efficiency, outweighs the cost of such IT-project. Another reason for this app is of course the safety: better security against fraud and forgery. But if we take a look at other big IT-projects of governmental organizations, one could doubt if it really will improve the security against fraud and forgery. I will discuss a few examples that will explain my doubts about the added value and safety of the digital driver’s license.
The OV-chipcard for public transport got hacked easily, which meant that with a simple NFC-reader, one could travel for free. Second example: a huge automation project at the ministry of security in 2013 failed. 25 million euro was budgeted, but in the end it costed over a 100 million and the system was not used by its users. Another example, the electronic patient record, took 15 years and costed 300 million euros before it was cancelled. The development of the C2000 communication system for the emergency services costed 1 billion euros, but the communication system failed at crucial moments. If you aren’t convinced yet that the Dutch government and IT are a horrible combination: More than 30% of the big IT-projects fail in a way that the system that is developed will not be used at all. The cost for society? Between 1 and 5 billion euros a year, according to the parliamentary committee.
Of course I believe it is important as government to make processes as efficient and safe as possible. But will our digital driver’s license be more safe in 2020? And are these kinds of digitalisations really necessary, do they add enough value, compared to the price the IT-projects have?
Sources:
http://www.bnr.nl/nieuws/10128802/weer-mislukt-een-ict-project-bij-de-overheid
http://www.ad.nl/binnenland/rijk-faalt-bij-ict-projecten-het-gaat-mis-op-alle-niveaus~a354c62f/
https://androidworld.nl/apps/rdw-applicatie-fysiek-rijbewijs-vervangen/
https://tweakers.net/nieuws/116331/rdw-werkt-aan-app-die-rijbewijs-kan-vervangen.html
