Residents who hold an Emirates ID card can soon register for ‘face recognition service’ from an ICA customer service station, self-service machines or smart apps, as your Emirates ID may no longer be needed as proof of identification.
Shortly, your face will be your identity, literally, and will provide all details about you in the UAE.
The Federal Authority for Identity and Citizenship (ICA) has launched upgraded version of the Digital Certification Portal for government and private institutions to verify personal identity of individuals, using facial recognition feature.
The upgraded technology validates your face and stores it in the database. The algorithm will capture the facial biometrics and obtain details of your identity. The technology may be available within a month, said Majed Alblooshi, Head of digital services section, ICA.
The updated algorithm of facial recognition allows easy identification of individuals within just three seconds. The service is available for all Emirates ID holders who are 15 years and above.
Anyone holding an Emirates ID can register for the service from a customer service station, self-service machine or smart apps. Once the facial biometric is registered at the ICA portal, the user received an OTP for confirmation of his identity.
Once the identity is confirmed, Physical Emirates ID will not be required to confirm identity. The new system will take care of that.
The user data, including Emirates ID number, unified identification number, passport number and a specific QR code will be saved and the user can get a digital copy of their Emirates ID, passport etc.
The QR code can be used by the user for identity by confirming with an OTP.
UAE nationals will have the option for family book, while for expats residence copy will be required along with details of dependents.
According to Alblooshi, this will ease operations in healthcare, banking, businesses and other government entities.
The UAE is focusing on digitalisation for positive change, and this is one of the projects being followed, Alblooshi said.
