Company News

Datasonic and IRIS in Contention for the Malaysian MyKad Contract

DATASONIC Group Bhd is reported to be in contention for the replacement contract for the Malaysian national identity card, otherwise known as MyKad.

Example of MyKad (© National Registration Department).

In May 2016, Datasonic was awarded a 3½-year contract worth RM 260.4 million for the supply of 12 million raw MyKads and MyKad consumables to the National Registration Department. The contract was to run from 1 July 2016 to 31 Dec 2019.

In January 2020, it received an extension contract to supply 6.1 million raw MyKads over a one-year period.

Based on the value of the 2016 contract, the cost of each new MyKad is around RM 20. The replacement MyKads may come with more security features, making it harder to produce fake cards.

The contract value might also be higher than that in 2016, as it is a replacement contract rather than a supply contract for raw materials and consumable MyKads. This means that all MyKads may need to be replaced by entirely new cards.

The government is developing a National Digital Identity project. So, it is possible that MyKads will have to be able to store all the new format digital information to be integrated with the National Digital Identity system.

The National Digital Identity is an advanced method of authenticating a user’s identity online, whereby it is safe, secure and protected. It is not a substitute for the National Registration Identity Card, or MyKad, though, nor will it be compulsory for everyone.

IRIS Corp Bhd, the company involved in the project to produce the world’s first ePassport in 1998, is also believed to be in the running for the contract.

In June 2021, IRIS secured an extension of contract for the supply and production of three million national identity and voter cards for the government of Senegal, worth RM 80.34 million.

IRIS has also been awarded a RM 1.09 billion contract by the Ministry of Home Affairs for the National Integrated Immigration System (NIISe) project. Last September, it secured a US$27.54 million contract to procure 15 million International Civil Aviation Organization-compliant electronic contactless inlays, along with its operating system, for India.

Apart from Datasonic and IRIS, Percetakan Nasional Malaysia Bhd — owned by tycoon Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Albukhary — also has the capability to produce trusted identity documents such as the MyKad.

In June of this year, Datasonic was awarded a RM 39.8 million contract by the Ministry of Home Affairs for the provision of comprehensive maintenance services of card personalisation centres at the National Registration Department for 24 months, increasing the group’s outstanding order book to RM 450 million.

1 RM = 0.24 USD as at 28.08.2021.

Amazon Plans to Adopt Behavioural Biometrics for Staff Identity Monitoring

Amazon is looking to boost security after imposters acting as customer service employees managed to access customer data on four occasions.

Amazon plans to monitor the keyboard strokes and mouse movements of customer service employees in an attempt to stop rogue workers, imposters, or hackers accessing customers' data, according to an internal Amazon document.

The document also includes several concrete instances where people managed to steal Amazon customer data.

Although the document says Amazon has considered deploying a solution that captures all of a worker's keystrokes, the tool the company has seemingly leaned towards buying is not designed to record exactly what workers type or monitor their communications. Instead, the system generates a profile based on the employee's natural keyboard and mouse movements, and then continuously verifies whether it seems the same person is in control of the worker's account to catch hackers or imposters who may then steal data.

The move highlights the sorts of tools companies may increasingly deploy as working from home or remotely continues during the ongoing pandemic, and the issues Amazon is already facing with the theft of customer data.

Security, finance, legal, and other Amazon teams reached a consensus on using a product from a cybersecurity company called BehavioSec, the document reads.

‘Behavioural biometrics uses characteristics of human behaviour to authenticate individuals based on how they digitally engage their devices and apps, such as mouse movements, typing rhythm, touch and swipe gestures, or how they hold their device,’ BehavioSec's website reads.

Buying BehavioSec software for around 750,000 users, at which point licensing the software will become cost effective, will cost US$1,360,000, the document says.

Onfido’s Benelux Expansion

Onfido are opening a new Amsterdam office to support sales growth in the region, where customers already include bunq and LeasePlan Bank.

Onfido, the global identity verification and authentication provider, has announced mobility leader Lynk & Co as its latest customer in Benelux, adding to the list of customers the company already supports in the region, including challenger bank bunq and LeasePlan Bank.

Onfido has also announced the establishment of its regional HQ in Amsterdam, to offer further support for European customers given the increased demand for trusted identity services, particularly from financial services and mobility sectors where identity verification is essential in verifying real identities remotely and combating identity fraud.

Lynk & Co, which offers a membership-based mobility solution to consumers, has integrated Onfido’s AI-powered document and biometric verification solution to verify users quickly and efficiently. According to Onfido, its proprietary technology verifies users’ identities with a more convenient user experience for customers while keeping fraudsters out.

By integrating Onfido, Lynk & Co customers are able to sign up to the service by simply taking a photo of their identity document and also taking a selfie. Onfido first checks that the ID is genuine and not fraudulent, and then matches the ID to the user’s face, ensuring that the person presenting the identity is its legitimate owner and is physically present.

Lynk & Co joins Onfido’s existing customers in the Benelux region, as Onfido establishes its presence with office space in Amsterdam and looks to further support the region’s growing fintech, mobility and online services sectors.