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Solutions for reliable high-security government ID production

As I've been meeting with government end users and integrators and discussing their requirements for durable, high-security government-to-citizen IDs over the past year, I have seen the interest in HID's FARGO® HDP8500 Industrial Printer/Encoder continue to rise.

Since HDP8500 shipments began in June, 2012, the printer has already been selected for multiple high-security government projects throughout the world, from Australia to South America to the Middle East.

The main reason government ID issuers are looking to the HDP8500 has been the printer's ability to consistently produce secure IDs hour after hour, day after day. At the forefront of the demand for this type of solution are local and national governments; they continually seek reliable solutions for issuing ultra-secure citizen IDs that successfully withstand tampering and forgery attempts. Their requirements include:

  • Card production that meets high throughput demand - printer hardware must be rugged enough to withstand continual use over multiple shifts, whether in a centralized cluster of printers and/or in a distributed array at remote locations.
  • Durable IDs that meet or exceed longevity requirements - printing technology has to be flexible enough to personalize durable polycarbonate card materials in addition to PC, PET, ABS and PVC, and protect cards with polyester overlaminates.
  • Tamper- and fraud-resistant IDs - issuance systems must allow a range of customized high-security visual elements to be incorporated into cards via laser engraving, custom holographic film, overlaminates and/or fluorescing print ribbons.

 

Recently introduced at CARTES in Paris this year, the new FARGO HDP8500LE Industrial Card Laser Engraver gives ID issuers the ability to use superior engraving technology to permanently inscribe data into highly secure ID cards. Data engraved into credentials are virtually impossible to alter or manipulate. The laser engraver delivers essential security for government card issuance programs that bear an elevated risk of forgery or identity misrepresentation, including voter or worker registration cards, drivers' licenses and citizen identity permits. The laser engraver module integrates seamlessly with the HDP8500 Industrial Series printer/encoder and lamination modules.

It's good news that today operators of high security card issuance programs have a variety of solutions available to help them achieve their challenging and complex security missions. They are telling me that a reliable, flexible desktop printer that allows them to continually produce high volumes of durable high-security IDs is a welcome solution that will meet their needs for today as well as into future.