Jakarta–NXP, the independent semiconductor company founded by Philips, announced that it supplies SmartMX chips to Pura Smart Technology, the smartcard manufacturing division of PT. Pura Barutama. Pura’s smartcards have been chosen as the Indonesian Overseas Worker’s Identification Card by the Republic of Indonesia’s newly formed National Board for Placement and Protection of Indonesian Overseas Workers (BNP2TKI). With an increasing number of Indonesians traveling overseas for employment, the ID card promises a secure means of verifying identity when requesting a variety of government services.

The Indonesian government expects to issue 370,000 of these ID cards in 2007, offering a high level of physical security thanks to features such as guilloche, rosette, microlettering, invisible ink, demetalized hologram and filter image technology. Each secure contactless SmartMX chip embedded in the ID card has an onboard memory of 36K with JCOP (Java Card Open Platform) card operating system, allowing details of the cardholder’s identity to be stored and retrieved securely when required. This information may include biographic data, biometric data such as face image and fingerprint templates, employment information, medical records, insurance status and bank account data. As the ID card becomes more widely used, it may also be used for debit and credit bank transactions.

As the agency responsible for its citizen’s welfare while working overseas, BNP2TKI has two objectives for this new ID card. First, it hopes the card will streamline embarkation, disembarkation and work permit extension services, in addition to enabling banking, medical and insurance services in the near future. Second, the agency aims to offer workers a tamper-proof card that complements the holder’s passport, allowing them to carry an alternative form of ID at all times while overseas.

Commenting on the rollout of the Worker’s ID Card in Indonesia, Mr. Jumhur Hidayat, chairman of BNP2TKI, said, “We are pleased to offer our citizens a highly secure and effective form of identification. With this ID card we will be able to provide better and more convenient services to our people working overseas without compromising their security.”

Mr. Jeroen Keunen, NXP Senior Director (Identification) said, “The inherent security and contactless operational features of the SmartMX are put to good use in this Indonesian Overseas Worker’s ID Card. The chip offers the flexibility and functionality needed to help ensure legitimate identification, and the expansion of services to banking in the future will bring even greater convenience to the card holder. This is a win-win proposition for the government, the people and businesses in Indonesia.”

Regarding the collaboration with NXP for the Indonesia Overseas Worker’s ID project, Mr. Jacobus Busono, the founder and President Director of PURA Group, said, “We welcome the initiative taken by the government of Indonesia (BNP2TKI) to provide Indonesian workers with better protection and services overseas. One means to do so is to provide workers with microprocessor based, contactless chip ID cards. We have adopted NXP’s contactless chips due to the technical and operational requirements of the system. We believe that our strategic cooperation with NXP will guarantee the sustainability of the project, which in turn is vital for BNP2TKI’s operations.”

About NXP Semiconductors NXP is a top 10 semiconductor company founded by Philips more than 50 years ago. Headquartered in Europe, the company has 37,000 employees working in more than 20 countries and posted sales of EUR 5 billion in 2006. NXP creates semiconductors, system solutions and software that deliver better sensory experiences in mobile phones, personal media players, TVs, set-top boxes, identification applications, cars and a wide range of other electronic devices. News from NXP is located at www.nxp.com.