BILLERICA, Mass., 15 December 2004. Viisage today announced that the State of Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (DHSMV) selected Viisage's automatic document authentication technology to detect falsified documents and ensure that state drivers' licenses are issued only to the rightful owners.
The $1.1 million contract awarded to Viisage is part of a federally funded Department of Homeland Security program to protect critical infrastructure, and Florida is the first state to use grant funding for this express purpose. The initiative will help the state prevent attempted identity theft and fraud, a problem that plagues individuals, economies and national security.
In early 2005, Florida will begin using Viisage's automatic document authentication technology to quickly and easily determine the authenticity of multiple documents including passports, visas, U.S. and Canadian drivers' licenses, U.S. immigration cards, U.S. border crossing cards, and other forms of identification. This process will be used to help ensure that the documents presented by an applicant are valid and entitle the applicant to a Florida state driver's license.
"Ensuring valid drivers' licenses are issued only to the rightful owners and protecting the identities of the citizens of Florida are our top priorities," said Fred Dickinson, executive director of the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.
"Viisage's technology is a key component to these initiatives, as it provides us with critical information on whether the identity documents presented by a driver's license applicant are authentic. Ultimately this enables us to issue valid drivers' licenses only to qualified applicants, and investigate suspect cases of attempted identity theft and fraud."
The iA-thenticate software product to be used in Florida became part of the Viisage product suite through the recent acquisition of Imaging Automation, a privately-held company formerly based in Bedford, N.H.
"As validated by the strong political support for the Intelligence Bill, identity documents, like the Florida state drivers' license, have become an important part of all homeland security initiatives. Whether entitling an individual to cross our borders or access information and resources, such as finances, we have all come to recognize the importance of these documents," said Bernard Bailey, president and CEO of Viisage. "Florida's progress in ensuring the authenticity and ownership of these documents is exemplary."
Viisage delivers advanced technology identity solutions for governments, law enforcement agencies and businesses concerned with enhancing security, reducing identity theft, and protecting personal privacy. Viisage solutions include secure credentials such as passports and drivers' licenses, biometric technologies for uniquely linking individuals to those credentials, and credential authentication technologies to ensure the documents are valid before individuals are allowed to cross borders, gain access to finances, or granted other privileges.
With over 3,000 installations worldwide, Viisage's identity solutions stand out as a result of the Company's industry-leading technology and unique understanding of customer needs. Viisage's product suite includes FaceTOOLS SDK, Viisage PROOF, FaceEXPLORER, iA-thenticate, BorderGuard, FacePASS and FaceFINDER. For more information, see www.viisage.com.