Thales to Safeguard Thai Citizens' Identity with Innovative E-Passports
BANGKOK, Thailand-In 2018, the Thai Government launched 'Thailand 4.0' with a vision to develop Thailand into an innovative, dynamic and value-driven economy. With this in mind, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) of Thailand will provide 15 million technically-advanced, high-security e-passports to Thai citizens thanks to the DGM Consortium, which includes Gemalto, a Thales Company, Data Products Toppan Forms Ltd., and MultiCert. The Thai E-passport project is the largest passport project contracted for the Group in 2019.
Thai citizens can look forward to a newly-designed 64-page biometric travel document which includes an e-Cover with a thin, flexible datapage made of polycarbonate as well as a window containing a second image of the citizen and a true colour UV photo. These security features ensure that the document complies with the highest standards of security recommended by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). Thai citizens will benefit from the highest level of performance of the secure embedded software for fast border crossing. Furthermore the DGM Consortium will also implement a highly secure end-to-end electronic passport system that will also strictly comply to the Personal Data Protection Act of Thailand.
The current passport production capacity will increase significantly, as two active high security production sites – a Remote and a Main facility - will be established as part of the project to ensure business continuity and security for passport issuance. By providing continuous training and transfer-of-technology to develop local expertise in passport issuance, Thales is leveraging its global technological expertise to upskill the Thai workforce as it moves towards a digital future.
Beyond a newly-designed passport, Thai citizens will benefit from greater efficiency in registering for their passports as the project will upgrade citizen-facing enrolment operations in 22 existing managed sites throughout Thailand, as well as include an expansion plan to establish 15 new sites throughout the country, offering more service points for Thai citizens to obtain their travel documents.
As a committed partner to Thailand for more than 30 years in industry sectors ranging from defence to air traffic management and to ground transportation, Thales aligns with this vision by now bringing its technology expertise in the digital identity and biometrics sector, making us a trusted partner to the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs as they deliver a highly-secured and modern passport for their citizens.
"Having supported the ambitions of our Thai customers over the last three decades in multiple industries, Thales is strongly committed to developing local industrial capabilities in close collaboration with our partners. The Group has developed some of the world's most sophisticated e-passports that continuously support governments' push towards the use of biometrics to ensure quick and secure cross-border movement.
Today, we are proud to add Thailand to that list and to help the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) strengthen homeland protection and improve the travel experience of Thai citizens. We look forward to close collaboration with MOFA and our partners to design and develop a superior e-passport that meets their unique requirements, and that exceeds the highest level of security recommended by ICAO."
Massimo Marinzi, Country Director, Thales Thailand
