Biometric Identities and E-Government Services

Governments are using the Internet and e-commerce technologies to provide public services to their citizens (Watson & Mundy, 2001). In so doing, governments aim to form better relationships with businesses and citizens by providing more efficient and effective services (Al-Kibisi, de Boer, Mourshed, & Rea, 2001). E-government provides opportunities to streamline and improve internal governmental processes, enable efficiencies in service delivery, and improve customer service (Bannister & Walsh, 2002). As a result, achieving successful e-government delivered over the Internet has become a key concern for many governments (Eyob, 2004). Additionally, there are privacy, security, and trust issues for citizens interacting with government services compounded by the electronic nature of the interaction. Biometric identifiers may present a solution to some of these concerns, leading to increased levels of secure, private, and trusted e-government interactions.