Suprema readers support Korean ePassport issuance

Suprema, a supplier of fingerprint recognition technology and systems, has announced that its RealScan electronic passport readers and related software will be adopted by South Korea’s nationwide passport issuing offices and foreign embassies abroad.

Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade will issue electronic passports to the whole of the Korean public from August 2008, and Suprema’s electronic passport readers will be placed in 187 domestic offices and 39 embassies abroad for passport issuing.

Suprema’s RealScan is an ICAO compliant passport reader that is capable of verifying most other countries’ passports as well. The device can also ensure data quality of electronic passports by comparing text information on the passport pages to the electronic data of the passports’ RF chip.

Suprema says that RealScan also reads and processes conventional passports and is compatible with the Korean Government’s new passport information system.
With the spread of electronic passport in many countries, the company expects growing demand in areas such as automated immigration clearances, check-in counters, duty-free shops and foreign exchanges.