Packaging

FEEL-ID from Giesecke & Devrient Provides Maximum Security and Easy Authentication for Identity Documents

Modern identity documents are based on complex security concepts. The Munich-based security specialist Giesecke & Devrient (G&D) has now developed an interactive feature known as FEEL-ID, which systematically combines multiple security technologies in order to achieve maximum protection against counterfeiting.

Thursday 12. November 2009 - Modern identity documents are based on complex security concepts. The Munich-based security specialist Giesecke & Devrient (G&D) has now developed an interactive feature known as FEEL-ID, which systematically combines multiple security technologies in order to achieve maximum protection against counterfeiting.

FEEL-ID is a feature that reacts to changes in temperature by utilizing the thermochromic properties of the materials employed. Identity documents such as national ID cards, driver’s licenses and passports can be authenticated rapidly and reliably using techniques as simple as rubbing them with your finger. This exciting new product is due to be presented at this year’s CARTES & IDentification exhibition and congress in Paris.

The designation FEEL refers to a highly secure feature that G&D has already successfully deployed in the field of banknote printing. “We have tailored this feature to the particular requirements of protecting ID documents. By combining a multifunctional security concept with the option of simple visual inspection, we have created an optimum security solution that can be deployed in any country in the world. The documents can be reliably authenticated without requiring special equipment or costly infrastructure. FEEL-ID is activated by applying heat and can then be checked with the naked eye,” states Hans-Wolfgang Kunz, Group Executive for G&D’s Government Solutions business unit, explaining how the new feature works.

The basis of FEEL-ID is STEP, a semi-transparent, optically variable special-effect ink incorporating a three-dimensional structure. Two different colors can be seen depending on the viewing angle, and neither the change in color nor the optical 3-D effect can be copied.

The area beneath the special-effect ink is printed in a dark background color which changes its opacity depending on temperature. Heat causes the characteristics of this printed layer to change, making it transparent and revealing the information incorporated in the card body under the special-effect thermochromic ink. This could comprise static information such as a country code, or personalized information in the form of a “ghost image” – a second picture of the card holder in a miniaturized format that is laser-engraved in the style of a silhouette. Laser engraving is considered to be the most secure form of personalization since the information is burnt into the card body through multiple layers. Manipulation of the data inevitably results in visible damage to the base material.

Both the special-effect inks are transparent to infrared light. As a result, the information incorporated under the layer of ink can be machine-verified and processed at border inspection posts using a reader, thereby ensuring reliable identification.

FEEL-ID is suitable for use in all kinds of high security documents, including national ID cards, driver’s licenses and passports with a PECSEC or polycarbonate data page. The level of temperature sensitivity of the security feature is individually scalable and can be precisely tailored to the thermal environmental conditions found in each specific country.