How secure is your ID?

Virtually every law enforcement agency in the U.S. issues to its sworn personnel an identification card bearing the name, photograph and title of the officer. Officers use the cards for identification primarily when out of uniform or off-duty. ID cards are often used for access to a courthouse or government building, attending training where sensitive information is being disseminated, flying on a commercial airliner while armed, working with officers and agents from other law enforcement agencies and conducting enforcement activities such as arrests and searches or when approaching a witness or suspect.

The problem

I want you to do something. Take your ID out and look at it. Now here are some questions: Where was it made? How is the design? Do you think it is secure? Does your license from the state have more security features? Do you know what the license security features are?

Let me guess those answers in order: No idea. Terrible. No. Yes. Yes.

Here is a follow-up question: What does the ID of the police department two cities away look like? Have you ever seen it and would you have any idea if it was “real” if someone showed it to you? For the majority of the country I am guessing the answer is that you have no idea what other police department credentials are supposed to look like. An officer has no way to immediately verify an ID by viewing it. Many are made by a regular printer anyone can buy or over at the local college because they have a printer that prints on cards and you don’t.

Now a few of you are saying, “Yeah, but I can tell if the person is a cop just by talking to them.” While this is true much of the time, someone who is brave and acts the part could easily slip by at an event, training, or entering a building. Social engineering is a common and growing way for people to obtain information by telephone or in person; this is often seen in hacking cases. This concept applies to this discussion.

Many police executives and tactics instructors believe the percentage of police officers carrying firearms off-duty is rising. At the same time, many private and public venues have installed metal detectors or have equipped their security employees with wands to detect weapons. Some of these employees receive minimal training and are unsure what to do when they encounter someone who purports to be an armed law enforcement officer.

Now that we have identified the problem, we can discuss some solutions. One state in particular had been trying to tackle this issue for years and recently had a breakthrough that other states might consider.

East Coast IDs

Massachusetts police officers now carry identification cards that are uniform in design and have security features to thwart tampering and counterfeiting. To the author’s knowledge, Massachusetts was the first state to undertake such an initiative.

The program was launched by the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association (MCOPA) to help citizens identify criminals posing as plainclothes officers and to make protected venues safe from people who try to gain access by posing as law enforcement.

Massachusetts law requires that police departments issue ID cards to their full-time police officers, but there has never been a standard for the design or content of the card. Each agency was left to design its own card and, as a result, recognizing them as authentic was problematic. In fact, most police officers admitted that they were unable to describe the ID cards carried by officers in adjoining jurisdictions.

Under a program launched in 2011, Massachusetts police officers carry uniform identification cards equipped with advanced security features. The first issuance was funded by the state’s homeland security regions; replacement cards are the responsibility of the department.

The first thing you notice about the new Massachusetts police ID is that it is portrait oriented, so that when it is slid it into a shield case it is oriented the same as the shield. A few other police departments like NYPD have made this same change. There is also a quarter inch margin around the edge of the card so that data is not obstructed when the card is placed in a case.

The new ID card has a banner across the top that reads “Commonwealth of Massachusetts”. Beneath the banner is the word “police” in large bold font. Further down is the officer’s photo. Officers are photographed by their departments against a blue background in uniform and without hats.

Beside the officer’s photo is the department seal, usually the shoulder patch, and beneath it are the officer’s name, rank, department, the department’s primary address and a twenty-four hour telephone number. The address is provided so that a lost card can be returned, and the telephone number allows an officer from another jurisdiction to call the department if necessary to verify the ID. All cards also bear issuance and expiration dates.

The back of the card is landscape. In the top left corner is a serial number (which can be entered into NCIC). If a card is lost or stolen the department can order a replacement, but it will come through with a different serial number. On the back of Massachusetts’ ID card is a writable surface. Officers sign the rear of their card upon receiving it. The TSA requires a signature on ID cards for officers who needs to carry a firearm on a commercial airliner.

The text beneath the officer’s signature attests that the bearer is a law enforcement officer as defined by the federal Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act (LEOSA). There are also instructions for a person who finds a lost card instructing him or her to mail it back to the issuing department or drop it in a mailbox. The bar code at the very bottom contains the officer’s name, rank and department and can be read with any standard bar code reader. This has been provided for future use and could be used to log officers in as they enter a command post or arrive at the scene of a critical incident.

Security first

The vendor chosen for the project is the current provider of drivers’ licenses in 43 different states, including Massachusetts. Their participation is beneficial because some of the security features used on the Massachusetts driver’s license are utilized on the Massachusetts police ID card. There are three levels of security on the police ID card: overt, covert and forensic.

• Overt features are those that we will tell the public about, and citizens can use them to determine an authentic card.
• Covert features are not obvious to the untrained eye, and are not revealed to members of the public.
• Forensic features may only be detected by L-1 using specialized equipment. Typically, that would occur if someone tried to counterfeit a police ID and L-1 needed to establish in a court of law that the card was a fake. The forensic security features are a closely guarded secret and only a handful of people know what they are. This article will review only the overt features.

The first and most significant security device is the Kinegram, which is an Optical Variable Device, or OVD. If you compare the Kinegram on the new police ID to the one on a Massachusetts driver’s license, you will see that they are identical. Not only can police officers verify the authenticity of a police ID by examining the same Kinegram they see on the licenses of motorists they stop, but a citizen who has their own driver’s license can compare it to the Kinegram on a police ID. The Kinegram is a highly secure device that is nearly impossible to duplicate. This is more sophisticated than a simple hologram.

Secure delivery system

Each police department is issued a code for access to a secure web portal. An officer assigned as the “department administrator” uploads an electronic version of their department seal and the signature of the police chief or commissioner. Individual cards are ordered one at a time.

Massachusetts police ID cards are manufactured at a secure location. Cards are shipped directly to each chief of police, rather than to individual officers or administrators.

Retired officers

Cards are available for officers when they retire. To be eligible, a retired officer must have separated from his or her department “in good standing” as required by LEOSA. Cards carried by retired officers look essentially the same as those for active duty officers except that the word RETIRED appears in red directly beneath the photograph, and the text on the rear of the card attests that the bearer is a retired law enforcement officer as defined by federal law. Cards issued to retired officers do not expire, but they remain the property of the issuing department and must be surrendered upon demand.

Establishing and enforcing standards

A credential is only as valid as the controls that govern its issuance. For this reason, a set of standards was established to ensure the uniform issuance and regulation of the cards. Massachusetts legislature has also passed a bill authorizing the state’s Secretary of Public Safety and Security to issue regulations regarding police identification cards. In order to qualify for a police ID card, an officer must meet the definition of a law enforcement officer as defined in LEOSA. Cards may not be issued to personnel who are not paid for the providing of police service.

Finally, each department is required to issue to its personnel a department policy on police identification cards. A model policy has been provided to every law enforcement agency.

Informing the public

ID cards are only effective if people know what to look for, so the MCOPA undertook an information campaign when the new cards were rolled out. A website called MassPoliceID.com was created for use by both law enforcement and the general public. People visiting the site can view a low resolution image of the new card. Visitors can also play a game where they are asked to estimate whether a pictured ID card is authentic or phony. MCOPA has distributed the flyers to the security division within the state court system, the federal courthouses, the TSA, sports stadiums and military bases.

The law enforcement community is expected to identify and correct security vulnerabilities to prevent exploitation by criminals and terrorists. It only makes sense that a professional uniform and secure police credential be distributed statewide. The next step would be for states and law enforcement agencies to share that information, so that officers in surrounding states and across the country could easily check and verify law enforcement credentials from any state.