Australia Tests Cloud-Based Passport

In the (not-so-distant) future, travelers from Down Under may not need to carry physical travel documents in order to roam the world. The Australian government funded an initiative to store all travel information for Aussie travelers in a cloud-based system, eliminating the need for an official travel document.

Based on a concept that came out of the nation-wide Ideas Challenge, an event hosted by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the cloud-based passports would allow citizens to travel passport-free between Australia and New Zealand, to start. Travelers would check in for flights using biometric identifiers like fingerprints or facial scanning software with live photo matching.

In 2005, most Australian passports were designed with a chip inside, so a large number of Australians already have documents that contain the necessary technology to transition to cloud-based computing. The biometric data to be stored in these systems would include personal information and travel history, making it easier for border control officers to monitor who comes in and goes out of the country.

With the easy availability of personal information, some citizens expressed concern that the data could be hacked and their personal information released to third parties. DFAT assures citizens, though, that before full implementation of the digital passports, the concept will undergo security testing to ensure the Australian passport remains one of the safest in the world.