Social Acceptance of ePassports

Using large-scale web survey in six countries we study the societal readiness and acceptance of specific technology options in relation to the potential next generation of ePassports. We find that the public has only limited knowledge of the electronic data and functions ePassports include, and often have no clear opinion on various potential uses for ePassports and related personal data. Still, the public expects from ePassports improvements in protection from document forgery, accuracy and reliability of the identification of persons, and protection from identity theft. The main risks the public associates with ePassports includes the possible use of personal information for purposes other than those initially stated, and covert surveillance. Compared to earlier studies, our research shows that issues of possible privacy invasion and abuse of information are much more perceived by the public. There is a weak correlation between a persons' level of knowledge about ePassports and their willingness to accept the use of advanced biometrics, such as fingerprints or eye iris images, in different identity management and identity checking scenarios. Furthermore, the public becomes more undecided about ePassport applications as we move from the basic state of the art towards more advanced biometric technologies in various scenarios. The successful pathway to greater acceptability of the use of advanced biometrics in ePassports should start from the introduction of perceivably high-benefit and low-risk applications. As the public awareness is low, citizens' belief in government benevolence, i.e. the belief that the government acts in citizens' best interest, comes out as an important factor in the overall context.