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Can you believe this? This is wacko even for the wacko free traders.
The United States has outsourced the manufacturing of its
electronic passports to overseas companies — including one in Thailand
that was victimized by Chinese espionage — raising concerns that cost
savings are being put ahead of national security, an investigation by
The Washington Times has found.
The Government Printing Office's decision to export the work has proved
lucrative, allowing the agency to book more than $100 million in recent
profits by charging the State Department more money for blank passports
than it actually costs to make them, according to interviews with
federal officials and documents obtained by The Times.
But everything is okay says GPO:
"Aside from the fact that we have fully vetted and qualified
vendors, we also note that the materials are moved via a secure
transportation means, including armored vehicles," GPO spokesman Gary
Somerset said.
Armoured vehicles? That may stop Jesse James and his gang
riding up on horses, but not hackers and spies. This is
2008. So maybe its not okay.
But GPO Inspector General J. Anthony Ogden, the agency's internal
watchdog, doesn't share that confidence. He warned in an internal Oct.
12 report that there are "significant deficiencies with the
manufacturing of blank passports, security of components, and the
internal controls for the process."
And about those hackers and spies, consider that one of the "vetted vendors" are in Thailand, Smartrac Technology.
Smartrac divulged in an October 2007 court filing in The Hague
that China had stolen its patented technology for e-passport chips,
raising additional questions about the security of America's
e-passports.
Yes, but at least they have armored vehicles.
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