At a pre-CES event in Las Vegas Samsung previewed a new form of identification that uses a combination of contactless smart card technology and a new ultra-slim OLED display for security applications.

The card carries all information you would come to expect from a typical ID card. But the real fun is when you activate the embedded chip. This triggers a wafer-thin 2” OLED that is used to display a rotating image of the person for enhanced identification, with a QVGA 240 x 320 resolution screen with 260k colors and a 10,000:1 contrast ratio.

According to Samsung’s spokesperson, this product is finished and all ready to hit the market.

An end-of-the-decade programming glitch is causing problems for holders of millions of German credit and ATM cards.

Some 20 million ATM cards, known as Girocards or EC cards in Germany, and 3.5 million credit cards are affected, according to a statement Tuesday by the German Savings Banks and Giro Association (DSGV). Officials from DSGV could not be immediately reached.

The problem is related to a programming error with ATM terminals and point-of-sale devices. DSGV said it expected up to 85 percent of the POS terminals to be updated and fixed by Thursday.

Most of the cards were issued by German financial institutions. Those holding German cards who are overseas can try to use their cards, as about half are fine and the other half will work despite the problems with terminals within Germany, DSGV said. But the association did recommend that people keep enough cash on hand just in case the cards don’t work.

The fiasco prompted one smart-card vendor to issue a press release saying its cards were not at fault. Oberthur Technologies, a smart-card and ATM technology vendor based in France, said in a statement on Wednesday that its German-issued cards were functioning.

It wasn’t clear from DSGV’s statement how banking customers could identify cards affected by the problems.

The decision of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to commence the registration of all Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card holders in the country is a commendable step towards bringing sanity to the Global System for Mobile (GSM) Communication and Code Diversion Multiple Access (CDMA) sectors and addressing the security crisis in Nigeria, according to the All Africa.

According to the Head, Media and Public Relations of the Commission, Mr. Reuben Muoka, those seeking registration of their SIM cards would need to produce valid identification documents including E-passport, corporate/company or work place identity cards that have pension identification/tax numbers; student ID cards from recognized institutions; drivers license issued by the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) and e-tax cards. Read more »

The Mediterranean Smart Cards Company (MSCC) has won an industry award for its innovations in the market of contactless smart card technology.

MSCC received the Banking Technology Leadership Award at the recent Cardex 2009 Digital Identity Conference and Expo for the Middle East and Africa regions.

The company was commended for its technological innovation and industry leadership, as well as landmark achievements in the region over the past year.

Hoda Shoukry, Managing Director of MSCC, said that the group had made significant efforts over the past few years to introduce the benefits of contactless smart card technology to stakeholders in Africa and the Middle East.

He went on to add that to receive the award was an extreme honour.

MSCC provides multiple schemes of pre-pay smart card products using the latest processing technologies. It appeared at the Expo with the aim of educating consumers about smart cards - “the payment of the future”.

Advanced Card Systems Ltd. (ACS, wholly owned subsidiary of Advanced Card Systems Holdings Ltd., SEHK: 8210), a global supplier of card and reader technologies, launches its new ACOS7 dual-interface smart card for the world Automatic Fare Collection (AFC) market.

“All-in-One Card” is a very popular concept. It is a single smart card being used within a city for multiple applications, both for transit and for non-transit payment. ACOS7 supports both contact and contactless interfaces, while, as the other option, it supports only contactless interface. Complaint with ISO7816-4 and supporting secure e-purse, e-deposit and transactions, ACOS7 can be applied to transportation, retail, property management, car parking, utility supply, etc.

Additionally, certified to be compliant with the Ministry of Construction (MoC) standard, a national “All-in-One Card” standard defined by the China Government, ACOS7 is ideal for the AFC market in China. China is the country in the world with the largest number of smart cards in use for AFC. This Chinese standard was set based on the vast experience of MoC in involving in many “All-in-One Card” Projects in China. This standard could be used as a reference by the standard setting bodies of other countries.

“AFC is indeed a killer-application of smart cards. The release of ACOS7 signifies ACS’s deeper engagement in serving the growing world AFC market,” said Gilbert Leung, Sales Director of ACS. “ACS will continue to put its resources on research and development so as to provide a wider range of products to suit different needs of the world and facilitate an easier realization of smart card applications.”

For further details of ACOS7 Dual-interface Smart Card, please visit, please visit www.acs.com.hk/index.php?pid=product&id=ACOS7 .

Nepali government is preparing to issue a special digital identity card with all information about a person to replace the traditional identity cards including citizenship certificate, voter’s card, driving license, passport and ATM cards, local media reported on Monday.

According to myrepublica.com, the Office of the Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers (OPMCM) is working on the technical aspects of the card to be named “Biometric Smart Card”. The card will be recognized as the national identity card.

Initially, the card will be issued for the purpose of election in a specific geographic region for testing. It will also have a person’s fingerprint transcribed digitally.

According to a joint secretary at the OPMCM Hari Prasad Nepal, a specific number will be provided for a citizen with the card. A citizen can avail all facilities provided by the state based on the card.

The smart card includes all information about a person including his name, address, date of birth and marriage records, among others. It will ease the functions of a local registrar including birth, death, migration, marriage registrations.

It will also help to maintain social security and curb the problem of dual citizenship.