Plan for ID Cards Drawing Criticism

Privacy advocates are particularly concerned about one option being considered, Radio Frequency Identification Technology, in which an embedded microchip contains information that can be read with a scanner. The government's planned use of the chips on U.S. passports, scheduled to start by the end of the year, has prompted a swell of panic from business travelers. Last month, the American Civil Liberties Union, Americans for Tax Reform, American Conservative Union, National Lawyers Guild, Gun Owners of America and others sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security speaking against using it.