My id is about to expire. So I took an appointment with the office that delivers to kind of documents, and early this morning I went to take my biometric identity (picture and fingerprints).
During the whole procedure, I felt something wrong. I felt it was easy to exchange two people identity or even create one wrong identity.
The process happens in three steps :
This is an easy step. Just fill in data about you and select a date you'll go. I suppose verification of those data is made, but I don't know (and I didn't try to know).
Here is the security flaw. You identify yourself with your actual identity documents. Then they ask you some information and you pay. They give you a receipt of your payment. Then you wait in a waiting room with others people to access the “biometric room”.
In the biometric room, visually isolated from others room, you meet a new agent and he asks you the receipt. But *only* the receipt. No ID card, nothing. The computer screen used by the agent is oriented in the way that you can see the whole process. He asks you if data are right and let you go in front of the camera, takes pictures, takes fingerprints, sign and you're done.
During the process, I haven't seen my picture on the computer screen and the agent didn't ask me my ID. The receipt didn't have any picture printed on it neither. What would have happened if I exchanged my receipt with the others guys waiting before the biometric room ? I don't know, but I guess I'd have a new name by now …
Actually I hope I miss something at some point during the process (early in the morning I'm half aware), something that would have allowed the agent to identify me, but I don't think. Maybe some later check ?
So I called the federal office : it should have been a visual control by the second agent. I might not have seen this control. Also in some case there's no picture, this might be a problem. But I said that an ID check by the second agent would be a good improvement and that was admitted as it. Hope they'll modify the process to improve it.