Malaysian Government to introduce high-tech ID cards

Malaysian Government announced on 13 January 2014 to introduce high-tech ID cards for foreign workers. The cards will be introduced by the end of December 2014. These biometric identity cards are being introduced to control the influx of illegal foreign workers.

The new ID cards, embedded with high-tech chips, would ensure only legal foreign workers are working in the country. The cards will store identification documents of the holder and could be examined easily by the security personnel.

The cards will come in different colours to indicate various sectors of employment.

The ID cards will have barcodes that will allow enforcement officers to scan them using a smartphone to access the workers' details. These security elements are important to prevent fraud and forgery of the card.

Malaysia depends heavily on foreign workers to strengthen its tourism and infrastructure industry. Currently, more than 2.25 million foreign workers are registered in the country. The workers from countries like India, Indonesia, Bangladesh and Cambodia constitute the main workforce in Malaysia.

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