Australia opens bids to provide Govpass identity verification solution

Mar 23, 2018, 2:56 pm EDT | Chris Burt

Categories Biometrics News | Government Services

Australia’s Digital Transformation Agency (DTA) has published a request for tender (RFT) to acquire a “liveness capture” digital credentialing and identity verification solution for its Govpass program.

DTA CDO Peter Alexander told Senate Estimates in February that while the framework for the program had been set out, “Govpass doesn’t exist.”

The biometric solution will have to enable users to enroll and authenticate them against government-issued ID, such as a driver’s license or passport, through the camera, and must work with smartphones, tablets, and PCs, according to ZDNet. The software will be required to inform users of problematic conditions for quality image capture, such as lighting or background issues, and provide feedback on angle, facial expression and other variables to ensure image quality meets the necessary standards. It must also provide automated image enhancements, and crop JPEGs to a 1MB maximum.

The solution must also provide liveness detection, in the form of capturing multiple images or video, guided user actions such as head turning, audio capture capabilities for voice recognition, and it must have the capability to detect suspicious behavior, such as spoofing attempts.

Alexander told the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Tax and Revenue in November that the Australian Tax Office, the Department of Human Services, and Australia Post will be responsible for Govpass, at least initially.

The contract on offer is for one year, with an option for a three year extension, and bidding closes April 16.

Unisys and IDEMIA recently won a $34 million contract to provide Australia’s Department of Home Affairs with an Enterprise Biometric Identity Service for vise, border crossing, and citizenship applications.