AN IDENTITY DOCUMENT DATA PROTECTION TOOL

Abstract

 The application describes an identity document data protection tool comprising a mainly transparent sheet (200) attached to a non-stick liner, wherein after the sheet is removed from the non-stick liner the sheet is configured to be repeatedly attached to and detached from a specific type of identity document (100) comprising at least one unique visible personal data element (102, 104, 106), and wherein portions (202, 204, 206) of the sheet are provided with one or more copy protection elements such that a main part of the at least one unique visible personal data element can be captured by an image capturing device and a remaining part of the at least one unique visible personal data element cannot be captured by the image capturing device when the sheet is attached to the specific type of identity document. Furthermore, repeated detachment of the sheet does not damage the identity document.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The subject disclosure relates to an identity document data protection tool, a passport and a method of protecting data of an identity document.

BACKGROUND ART

[0002] Identity fraud and theft is a serious form of crime that is receiving more and more attention. Personal data are stolen by criminals and misused for financial gain. For example, goods can be bought by criminals under the name of another person. In order to reduce the chance of becoming the victim of this type of fraud, it is advisable to be careful when exchanging personal data with third parties.

[0003] During holidays and business trips it is often necessary to identify yourself. For example, hotels often want to copy guests' identity documents, such as a passport. However, for identification it is not necessary to share the most basic information such as the national identification number (NIN), in the Netherlands known as citizen service number (CSN) and in Dutch burgerservicenummer (BSN), and passport photo, even if this is stated on an identity document. It is desirable to protect this sensitive information and to prevent its disclosure to third parties.

[0004] To prevent identity fraud, passport covers have been developed to hide fraud-sensitive information, such as national identification number, passport photo and document number, but still allow the necessary information to be displayed for identification purposes. A problem with these passport sleeves is that they clearly show that information is hidden. In order to ensure that all the essential information for a company to prove the identity of a person receiving a service or product, e.g. a hotel or rental business, is included on the copy, a receptionist will simply remove the identity document from the sleeve, copy it, and slide it back into the sleeve.

[0005] EP3400826A1 describes a passport cover for securely covering a passport. The passport cover comprises a first cover part with a first inner wall and a second cover part with a second inner wall. The first inner wall and/or the second inner wall comprise a transparent area to display a first type of information and an opaque area to conceal a second type of information. An inlet allows placing of the passport into the passport cover. A sealing unit is provided to close the inlet, and the sealing unit is configured to be held in a closed sealing position by a tamper evident seal. An advantage of the cover is that one can see when the passport has been removed from the cover. However, when the passport has been removed from the cover, a new tamper evident seal has to be used to hold the sealing unit in a closed sealing position.

[0006] GB2548643A describes a multi-page security document comprising a first polymer page adjacent to a further page. The first polymer page includes the polymer substrate and at least one opacifying layer. The opacifying layer is omitted on at least one localised region to form at least one window. When the first polymer page and the further page are arranged to overlie one another, the adjacent further page is visible in the at least one window when the first polymer page is viewed in reflected light. The polymer pages may be data pages containing personal data. In order to reproduce such a multiple security document a counterfeiter needs to ensure that security devices in the pages are accurately located relative to another such that the security devices are visible through the at least one window. This increases the costs to the counterfeiter and the level of skill required.

[0007] GB2128581A describes a self-adhesive transparent film having translucent markings printed on it at well-spaced positions. The film has a pressure sensitive adhesive on the same face as said markings so that it may stick over information presented on a sheet of paper e.g. a photograph in a passport to prevent that information being tampered with. The pressure sensitive adhesive used, is chosen so that attempted removal of the film leads to irreparable damages to either the substrate or the film itself, or both.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

[0008] It is an object of the present technology to provide an improved identity document data protection tool, which overcomes at least one of the disadvantages of the tools described above.

[0009] According to an aspect of the subject technology, this object is achieved by an identity document data protection tool having the features of claim 1. Advantageous embodiments and further ways of carrying out the present technology may be attained by the measures mentioned in the dependent claims.

[0010] An identity document data protection tool according to the subject technology comprises a mainly transparent sheet attached to a non-stick liner, wherein after the sheet is removed from the non-stick liner the sheet is configured to be repeatedly attached to and detached from a specific type of identity document. The specific type of identity document comprises at least one unique visible personal data element. Portions of the sheet are provided with one or more copy protection elements such that a main part of the at least one unique visible personal data element can be captured by an image capturing device and a remaining part of the at least one unique visible personal data element cannot be captured by the image capturing device when the sheet is attached to the specific type of identity document.

[0011] The concept of the present technology is that the person-related information that may be used in identity fraud is partially protected so that this information is not completely visible and thereby present on the copy, but that there is enough information visible so that the person who wants to make a copy of an identity document does not tend to remove the sheet before copying, because he or she cannot see all the information that he or she considers necessary. This can be done, for example, by covering only a limited number of characters of the citizen service number and/or some parts of the passport photo with the sheet. As the mainly transparent sheet can be repeatedly removed from the identity document without damaging the identity document and the sheet, the identity document can be fully checked and the sheet can be placed back on the identity document again to protect the personal data for copying.

[0012] In an embodiment, a first unique visible data element is depicted twice on the identity document by a first and a second representation of the first unique visible data element and wherein the portions of the transparent sheet prevent capturing of corresponding parts of each representation of the first unique visible data element. This property ensures that it is not possible to combine the information from the two representations on the identity document in order to derive the complete information. In a further embodiment, the first and second representation of the first unique visible data element have a dimensional ratio and wherein on the transparent sheet the portions of corresponding parts of the first and second representation have a corresponding dimensional ratio. For example, when a photograph is on the identity document in a large and small format, this feature ensures that almost the same part of both photographs is visible and hidden.

[0013] In an embodiment, the first representation of the first unique visible data element is visible on the front side of the identity document and the second representation of the first unique visible data element is visible on the back side of the identity document and the identity document data protection tool further comprises another sheet. The portions with copy protection elements on both sheets are located on substantially the same location. The locations of the portions are such that when one of the sheets is attached to the front or backside of the identity document the portions prevent capturing of a similar part of the first representation or the second representation. This feature has the advantage that a user cannot make a mistake when attaching the two sheets to both sides of the identity document. In both cases, the same information or characters of an information item are hidden on both sides.

[0014] In an alternative embodiment, wherein the identity document comprises a front side and a back side with a first unique visible data element on the front side and a second unique visible data element on the back side, the sheet comprises a front side cover sheet section, a back side cover sheet section and a folding structure between the front side cover sheet section and the back side cover sheet section. The front side cover sheet section comprises at least one copy protection element to cover partially the first visible data element and the back side cover sheet section comprises at least one copy protection element to cover partially the second visible data element. The folding structure enables to align the sheet on the identity document and to fold the sheet around an edge of the identity document.

[0015] In an embodiment, one side of the transparent sheet is covered with a silicone adhesive layer. Silicone adhesive enables easy application on a smooth surface. It maintains consistently low adhesion over long periods and therefore provides easy removal and replacement when required without damaging neither the identity document nor the identity document data protection tool.

[0016] In an embodiment, at least one side of the transparent sheet is covered with a silicone polymer based adhesive layer. Silicone polymer based adhesive enables easy application of the tool on a smooth surface in a non-permanent way that allows removal. It maintains consistently low adhesion over long periods of time and therefore provides easy removal and replacement when required without damaging the identity document and/or the tool.

[0017] In an embodiment, the copy protection element of at least one of the portions of the sheet is a non-transparent ink layer. Printing is an easy and inexpensive process to make portions of the sheet non-transparent.

[0018] In an embodiment, the unique visible data element is a string of characters having a background colour. A portion of the sheet prevents capturing at least one character of the string of characters and has at least at its edges a colour corresponding to the background colour of the at least one character. This feature masks that one or more characters of a string of characters on the identity document are hidden by the sheet and helps reducing the need to remove the identity document data protection tool during identification of the person in concern.

[0019] In an embodiment, at least one of the portions of the transparent sheet is obtained by applying light-reflecting particles in and/or on the transparent sheet. When a copy is made with a scanner, the light reflection of the particles will cause the image at that location to be overexposed, making the underlying data not visible on the copy.

[0020] In an alternative embodiment, at least one of the portions of the sheet is obtained by attaching non-transparent stickers on the sheet. In the context of the present application, a sticker is non-transparent when an image capturing device is not able to capture the information part of the identity document covered by the sticker. The non-transparent sticker may be a metal sticker.

[0021] In an embodiment, at least one of the portions of the transparent sheet is obtained by applying a different refractive index at locations of said at least one of the portions. In this way it is possible that there is no viewing angle under which all the information on the document is visible at the same time, while it is possible to see all the information by varying the viewing angle.

[0022] In an embodiment, the mainly transparent sheet comprises an alignment marking facilitating correct positioning of the one or more copy protection elements on the at least one unique visible personal data element. It has been found that in a batch of identity documents the unique personal data elements to be protected for copying do not have a fixed position on the identity document. The production process introduces the varying absolute position of the unique personal data element. As a result of the varying absolute position in a batch, the distance between the visible unique data elements and the edges of the identity document varies. However, there are other visible elements on the card which distance to the unique personal data elements on the identity document vary less than the distance to the edges. By using such visible element as anchoring point for the alignment marking on the sheet, the copy protection elements can be positioned more precisely to cover a desired part of corresponding unique personal data elements that need be protected for copying.

[0023] In an embodiment, the sheet has a length and width which are 1 - 5 mm smaller than the length and width of the identity document, or the page of the identity document to which the sheet is to be attached. This feature makes it more difficult to remove the sheet from the identity document and prevents the sheet from accidentally being detached from the identity document. This is because the sheet after being placed on the identity document its boundary is completely within the boundary of the identity document.

[0024] In an embodiment, the sheet comprises rounded corners. This feature ensures that the edges of the sheet of paper adhere better to the document and that a corner of the document is less likely to come loose.

[0025] In an embodiment, the sheet comprises at a corner a gripping aid facilitating detachment of the sheet from the identity document. This feature is special advantageous for use in a passport and facilitates detachment of the mainly transparent sheet from the page of the passport. If the gripping aid is located on a corner of the mainly transparent sheet that is next to the fold line of the passport, it is very unlikely that if the passport is partially opened the part of the gripping aid protruding from the passport is the reason why the sheet unintentionally comes off the page of the passport. When the passport is opened for verification purposes, a person can easily detach the sheet from the corresponding page of the passport using the gripping aid.

[0026] In an embodiment, the specific type of identity document comprises multiple pages, and the transparent sheet with portions has to be attached to a side of a page of the specific type of identity document comprising the at least one unique visible data element, the identity document data protection tool further comprises an instruction sheet configured to be attached on a page located opposite the page on which the transparent sheet has to be attached. The instruction sheet optionally with an adhesive layer or any other means of adhering like adhesive tape or sticker enabling repeatedly attaching and detaching the instruction sheet from the identity document without damaging the identity document or leaving any glue residue on the identity document. By explaining on the opposite page in the identity document why certain parts have been made invisible, the chance that the sheet will be removed during copying or passport-checking is reduced. The explanation may be given in a number of languages.

[0027] In an embodiment, the identity document data protection tool further comprises an instruction sheet optionally with an adhesive layer configured to be positioned on a page of a multipage identity document located opposite the page on which the transparent sheet has to be attached. The instruction sheet explains why parts of personal data element(s) are covered by the mainly transparent sheet. As a result, an officer or any other person checking the document will be less likely to peel off the mainly transparent sheet than if there was no instruction sheet. The mainly transparent sheet makes it possible to make a (photo)copy/scan of the identity document, which copy does not contain all data of the personal identity/data fraud sensitive information. The data of the personal identity/data fraud sensitive information visible in the copy still enables identification of the person in concern. The instruction sheet reduces the number of times the mainly transparent sheet is detached, which extends the service life of the mainly transparent sheet.

[0028] In a second aspect, there is provided a passport comprising a sheet configured to overlay a page of the passport comprising at least one unique visible data element. Portions of the sheet are provided with copy protection elements such that a main part of the at least one unique visible data element can be captured by an image capturing device and a remaining part of the at least one unique visible data element cannot be captured by the image capturing device when the sheet is overlaying said page of the passport comprising the at least one unique visible data element.

[0029] In a third aspect, there is provided a method of protecting at least one unique visible data element on an identity document, the method comprises the actions:

• providing an identity document data protection tool described above;
• removing the sheet from the non-stick liner; and
• attaching the sheet to the identity document such that a main part of the at least one unique visible data element can be captured by an image capturing device and a remaining part of the at least one unique visible data element cannot be captured by the image capturing device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0030] These and other aspects, properties and advantages will be explained hereinafter based on the following description with reference to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals denote like or comparable parts, and in which:

Fig. 1A schematically shows a front view of an identity document;

Fig. 1B schematically shows a front view of an embodiment of a sheet according to the subject technology;

Fig. 1C schematically shows a front view of the identity document shown in Fig. 1A to which the embodiment of the sheet shown in Fig. 1B is attached.

Fig. 2A schematically shows an embodiment of an embodiment of an identity document data protection tool according to the subject technology;

Fig. 2B schematically shows application of the identity document data protection tool shown in Fig. 2A;

Fig. 3 schematically shows a passport with a data protection sheet integrated in it; and,

Fig. 4A schematically shows a front view of an identity document;

Fig. 4B schematically shows a front view of a second embodiment of a sheet according to the subject technology;

Fig. 4C schematically shows a front view of the identity document shown in Fig. 4A to which the embodiment of the sheet shown in Fig. 4B is attached.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

[0031] Fig. 1A schematically shows a front view of an identity document 100. An identity document in the present disclosure is any document which may be used to prove a person's identity. Examples of an identity document include, but are not limited to: an identity card, passport, national identification card, regional identification card, and driver's license. The identity document is used to connect a person to information about the person, often in a database. The photo 102, 104 on the identity document 100 and the possession of it by a person is used to connect the person with the document. The connection between the identity document and information is based on personal information present on the document, such as the bearer's full name, age, birthdate, address, an identification number, card number, citizenship and more. A unique national identification number 106 is assigned to each person and is mostly used to define a unique link between a person and a database. A unique visible data element in the context of this disclosure is any of the personal data on the document that is unique to that person and that is perceivable by a human being or device. A QR-code or Bar-code on the identity document which is generated by using personal data may also be a unique visible data element.

[0032] Each type of identity document has its own layout. So a passport and driver's license are different types of identity documents. Furthermore, the layout of a particular type of identity document changes over time. The position of for example the photo on a passport and national identification number may be different on subsequent versions of the passport. In the context of the present disclosure, the term "specific type of identity document" refers to an identity document with a known layout. The position of a unique visible data element on a specific type of identity document is fixed for said specific type of identity documents.

[0033] Fig. 1B schematically shows a front view of an embodiment of a sheet 200 according to the subject technology. The majority of the sheet is transparent and some portions or regions are provided with copy protection elements such that a main part of the at least one unique visible data element can be captured by an image capturing device and a remaining part of the at least one unique visible data element cannot be captured by the image capturing device when the sheet is attached to the specific type of identity document. The remaining part corresponds to the parts that are covered by the copy protection elements. This is illustrated by Fig. 1C which schematically shows a front view of the identity document shown in Fig. 1A to which the embodiment of the sheet shown in Fig. 1B is attached. An image capturing device may, but is not limited to a scanning device, photocopying machine, a photo camera and mobile phone camera.

[0034] Portions 202 protect four small parts of the photograph for photocopying. Portions 204 protect similar parts of a smaller photograph on the identity document for photocopying. The dimensions and position of the portions 202, 204 are chosen such that a human can verify while the sheet is on the identity document whether the person wearing the identity document is the same as the person in the photograph and where the human does not have the need to remove the sheet as there is still sufficient image data visible to allow recognition of the person in the photograph enabling the human to identify the person giving the identity document. In this embodiment, a first unique visible data element, the photograph is depicted twice on the identity document by a first representation 102 and a second representation 104 of the first unique visible data element and wherein the portions 202, 204 of the transparent sheet prevent capturing of corresponding parts of each representation of the first unique visible data element. The first and second representation 102, 104 of the first unique visible data element have a dimensional ratio. The main difference is the size of the photograph and not the content. On the transparent sheet the portions 202, 204 of corresponding protected parts of the first representation 102 and second representation 104 of the first unique data element have a corresponding dimensional ratio. In this way, similar portions of the same photograph are hidden for copying. Consequently, it is not possible to reconstruct a full photograph by combining the image information from both photographs. In the present embodiment, the portions 202 covering small parts of the large photograph 102 and the portions 204 covering small parts of the small photograph 104 have a similar shape. In another embodiment, the portion 202 and 204 have the same size and are positioned such that the portions 204 cover at least the portions in the small photograph corresponding to the portions of the large photograph that are covered by the portions 202. In another embodiment, the shape and/or the size of the portions 202 and 204 are different, but cover at least some similar portions of the first and second representation of the person by the photograph.

[0035] Portion 206 protects a part of the national identification number 106 for copying. This unique visible data element is a string of characters having a background colour. A portion prevents capturing at least one character of the string of characters. The portion may have a colour corresponding to the background colour of the characters that are covered by said portion. In an embodiment, the edges of the regions have a colour corresponding to the background colour of the at least one character.

[0036] The portions provided with copy protection elements prevent to make a copy of the part of the identity document that is covered by the portions. A copy protection element may be a non-transparent ink layer provided on a transparent sheet by means of a printing process. The ink layer on the sheet makes said portions of the sheet opaque. It might also be possible that at least one of the portions of the sheet is obtained by applying light-reflecting particles in and/or on the sheet. Now, the information covered by the region with light-reflection particles can be seen by a human. However, when making a copy with a scanning device, the light reflecting particles will reflect the light of the scanner. As a result the area of the regions with light-reflection particles will be overexposed so that the data of the identity document that is covered by said regions is not readable on the photocopy of the identity document. In an alternative embodiment, sheet 200 is obtained by providing a transparent sheet to which non-transparent stickers are affixed. In another embodiment, at least one of the portions of the data protection sheet 200 is obtained by applying a different refractive index at locations of said at least one of the portions with a commonly known process. In this embodiment, there is no possibility to see all information on the identity document at only one angle of view. At different viewing angles, a person will view other parts of the identity document.

[0037] Other processes to provide the copy protection elements on the data protection sheet are: any suitable printing process, pasting with stickers, screen printing, blurring, applying light-reflecting flakes, embossing and any other process suitable to change the characteristics of the sheet in such a way that the content of at least one unique visible data element is not fully visible at any viewing angle.

[0038] Fig. 2A schematically shows an embodiment of an embodiment of an identity document data protection tool 300 according to the subject technology. The identity document data protection tool comprises a non-stick liner 302 on which data protection sheet 200 is attached and also an instruction sheet 400. Both the data protection sheet 200 and instruction sheet 400 may comprise an adhesive layer to attach the sheets to the non-stick liner. Any suitable adhesive layer may be used, preferably one which does not damage the identity document nor the data protection sheet when the data protection sheet 200 has to be temporarily removed from the identity document and can be reapplied to the identity document after removal. A silicone adhesive layer has been found to be very suitable for this purpose. The sheets may also be made from a self-adhesive or electrostatic material with a stable static charge. It may also be possible for the data protection sheet to be attached to the identity document by means of a vacuum between the sheet and document. In all these embodiments, the sheet can be removed from the identity document without leaving any adhesive on the identity document.

[0039] Fig. 2B schematically shows application of the identity document data protection tool shown in Fig. 2A. The specific type of identity document is a passport 500 in the form of a booklet. The data protection sheet 200 is attached to the page side comprising the unique visible data elements and the instruction sheet 400 is attached to the opposite page side when the booklet is opened. The instruction sheet explains that the passport is provided with a data protection sheet that covers partially some data elements against identity fraud, while still having the necessary data to identify the person of the passport. The explanation may be given in a number of languages. In this way, the human checking the identity of the person by means of the passport, can read why some parts of the photograph and national identity number are not visible as they are hidden by the data protection sheet 200. When a copy is made from the identity document to which the data protection sheet is attached, the content of the photograph and national identity number is not fully available on the copy.

[0040] On some types of identity documents, the personal data/fraud sensitive information element, such as the national identity number 106, is present on both the front side and the back side of the document. For such identity documents, the identity document data protection tool may comprise two sheets, one sheet to hide portions of a unique visible data element on the front side and one sheet to hide portions of the same unique visible data element on the back side of the identity document. The portions of the first sheet to hide portions of a unique visible data element on the front side and portions of the second sheet to hide portions of said unique visible data element on the back side may differ in position and shape and thus be designed for especially the front side and the back side. In another embodiment, the copy protection elements on both data protection sheets are located on substantially the same location. The locations of the portions are selected such that when one of the sheets is attached to the front or backside of the identity document the portions prevent capturing of a similar part of the first representation on the front side or the second representation on the back side. When a sheet is attached to the front side a first portion covers a part of the unique data element and a second portion covers something else. When said sheet is attached to the back side, the second portion covers a similar part of the unique data element on the back side and the first portion covers another part of the back side of the identity document. In an alternative embodiment, the identity document data protection tool comprises one piece sheet with a front side cover sheet section and a back side cover sheet section. The non-stick liner comprises a first removable part to which the front side cover sheet section is attached and a second removable part to which the back side cover sheet section is attached. Between the front side cover sheet section and back side cover sheet section the one piece sheet comprise a folding structure. The folding structure can be a line printed on the sheet, a folding line and any other structure to facilitate the folding of the one piece sheet around an edge of the identity document. When attaching the one piece sheet to an identity document, first the first removable part is removed from the one piece sheet. Then the front side cover sheet section is attached to the front side of the identity document. Subsequently, the second removable part of the liner is removed and the back side cover sheet section is folded around the edge of the identity document and attached to the back side of the identity document.

[0041] In other identity documents, a first unique visible personal data element sensitive for identity fraud is on the front side of the identity document and a second visible personal unique data element sensitive for identity fraud is on the back side of the identity document. For such identity documents, the identity document data protection tool may comprise two sheets, one sheet to hide portions of the first unique visible personal data element on the front side and one sheet to hide portions of the second unique visible personal data element on the back side of the identity document. The copy protection elements of the first sheet to hide portions of the first unique visible personal data element on the front side and copy protection elements of the second sheet to hide portions of the second unique visible personal data element on the back side may differ in position and shape and thus be designed for especially the front side and the back side. In another embodiment, the identity document data protection tool comprises two identical sheets with copy protection elements positioned such that if attached to the front side they cover partially the first unique visible personal data element and if attached to the back side they cover partially the second unique visible data element on the back side. The two identical sheets may be combined to one sheet with a folding line as described before.

[0042] Fig. 3 schematically shows a passport with a page forming a data protection sheet integrated in it. Said page has similar data protection features as the embodiments of a data protection sheet described above. When opening the passport, the page forming the data protection sheet remains attached to the page with the unique visible data elements. Only, when one has to make a copy of the whole page with unique visible data elements, he has to release the page forming the data protection sheet from the page with the unique data elements. When the passport is closed, the data protection sheet will be pressed back against the page with the visible unique data elements so that they will stay together again when the passport is opened again.

[0043] Fig. 4A schematically shows a front view of the identity document as shown in Fig. 1A. Reference 110 is a clearly visible characteristic on the identity document with clear edges. In the present embodiment, the clearly visible characteristic is a vertical bar next to the large photo 102. The vertical bar may be an area filled with small dots, an area with colour different from that of its surroundings, or any other visible feature to show a vertical bar on the identity document 100. The series of six dots underneath the photo 102 at the left half and the series of six dots at the right half of the identity document may also be used as clearly visible characteristic on the identity document. Due to different layouts and /or shapes of documents any other visible characteristic may be used.

[0044] Fig. 4B schematically shows a front view of a second embodiment of an identity document data protection tool 400 to the subject technology. Shown is a sticker sheet with a mainly transparent sheet 200 arranged on a cover sheet or backing sheet covering the side of the sheet 200 that will be arranged on an identity document 100.

[0045] In the second embodiment, an alignment marking 410 is present on the sheet 200. The alignment marking 410 is formed out of two parts each comprising two short lines forming a right angle. The alignment marking 410 is used to align the sheet 200 on the identity document as shown in Fig. 4C. It has been found that the position of the photos 102 and 104 relative to the edges of the identity document vary over a multitude of identity documents. This is due to the error margins in the accuracy of the manufacturing processes of the identity documents. The absolute position of the photos on two different identity documents can vary up to 2 á 3 mm horizontally and vertically on the document. However, it has been found that the relative distance between the vertical bar 110 and the photos 102 and 104 hardly varies over a multitude of identity documents. By positioning the alignment marking 410 on opposite corners of the clearly visible characteristic 410 in the form of a vertical bar, the copy protection elements 202 and 204 could be positioned more precisely on the photos such that corresponding parts of the photos are protected for copying by an imaging device.

[0046] It has also been found that the absolute position of the BSN 106 on the identity document can vary, especially in the bottom line of the identity document with letters/numbers/characters, but possibly also in other location(s) where the BSN is present on the identity document. On the one hand, this is caused by the error margins that can occur anywhere in the document due to the manufacturing process. On the other hand, the position of the BSN in the bottom line with letters/numbers/characters on the identity document (passport in the present case) depends on the font/spacing of the letters/numbers/characters that are included in the relevant line before (=left of) the BSN. For example, the letter "I" takes up less spacing than the letter "R" and the number "1" takes up less spacing than the number "8". As a result, the position of the BSN shifts to the left or right in the line depending on the characters used before and after the BSN in the bottom line. The chosen size of the copy protection portions is tailored to this. In combination with the alignment, the copy protection element 206 always covers a sufficient part of the BSN. The dimensions of a copy protection element to cover one or more letters/numbers/characters depend on the font and font size of these letters/numbers/characters and the production error margins. For example, the height of a copy protection element should be at least the height of the characters set increased with the possible displacement on the identity document up and down defined by the production error margins and a width of at least the maximum visual width of two characters from the set increased with the maximum gap between two neighbouring characters.

[0047] Due to different layouts and or shapes of documents any visible characteristic which distance to the unique personal data elements to be protected varies within a predefined margin may be used for alignment of the mainly transparent sheet on the identity document. The shape and dimensions of the alignment marking will correspond to shape and dimensions of the visible characteristic on the identity document that is used for alignment.

[0048] Which characteristic of the identity document will be used as alignment characteristic depends on the manufacturing process and the sequence of process steps to produce the identity document and the production error margins introduced by each process. For example, if the printing of the photograph, the BSN, and date of birth is printed in one process step, the date of birth may be used as alignment characteristic and a solid line in the form of a rectangle on the mainly transparent sheet with dimensions corresponding to the date of birth may be used as alignment marking. The variation in distance between the data of birth, photograph and BSN will then depend on the printing process.

[0049] The mainly transparent sheet 200 further comprises rounded corners. This ensures that the corners of the sheet are less likely to detach from the identity document. The mainly transparent sheet 200 further comprises a gripping aid 420. The gripping aid facilitates positioning and detachment of the sheet from an identity document. The gripping aid is at the upper left corner of the sheet 200. In a multiple page identity document, such as a passport, the gripping aid should preferably be located at a left of right corner of the sheet closest to the fold line of the passport. In case the sheet is adapted to be attached to an identity document, such as an ID-card, the gripping aid is located partially outside the ID-card. To reduce the chance of undesired releasing of the sheet from the ID-card, the gripping aid can be cut off just along the outer edge of the ID-card. As the cutting edge of the gripping aid is close to the outer edge of the ID-card, by moving a finger perpendicular along the outer edge, the remaining part of the gripping aid, still facilitates removal of the sheet from the Identity document. The gripping aid is optional as a nail may be used to lift an edge of the transparent sheet and remove it from the identity document.

[0050] Fig. 4C schematically shows a front view of the identity document shown in Fig. 4A to which the embodiment of the sheet shown in Fig. 4B is attached. It can be seen that only the gripping extends over the outer edge of the identity document and that the remaining outer edge 412 of the mainly transparent sheet is at some distance, in the range of 0.1 - 3 mm, from the outer edge of the identity document 100. Having the outer edge of the sheet of distance from the outer edge of the identity document ensures that the edges of the sheet are less likely to detach by itself from the identity document. The side of the identity document 100 to be covered by the mainly transparent sheet 200 has a length and a width which is about 1 - 5 mm longer than the length and width of the transparent sheet 200.

[0051] A specific type of identity document may be protected against copying by means of the following actions:

• providing an identity document data protection tool described before;
• removing the data protection sheet from the non-stick liner; and
• attaching the data protection sheet to the identity document such that a main part of the at least one unique visible data element can be captured by an image capturing device and a remaining part of the at least one unique visible data element cannot be captured by the image capturing device. If the identity document is in the form of a booklet with several pages, the method comprises further:
• removing the instruction sheet from the non-stick liner; and
• attaching the instruction sheet to the page in the booklet opposite the page to which the data protection sheet is attached.

[0052] It should be noted that in case the data protection sheet does not have an adhesive layer or is not static, the data protection sheet may be attached to the identity document by means of adhesive tape or stickers.

[0053] It should be noted, that the data protection sheet may comprise one or more openings. In this way some parts of the identity document are not covered by the data protection sheet. Furthermore, it is not necessary that an adhesive layer used to attach the data protection sheet to the identity document covers completely the data protection sheet. An adhesive layer along the periphery of the sheet may be sufficient.

[0054] A copy protection element may be made from an RFID shielding material, to prevent communication with an RFID device embedded in the identity document when the mainly transparent sheet is attached to the identity document. In another embodiment, the RFID shielding material is embedded in the instruction sheet.

[0055] The technology described in the present application allows identity document holders to better protect themselves against fraud caused by a copy of their identity documents because fraud-sensitive data, such as BSN and photo, are partially covered but still sufficiently visible so that the validity of the identity document needs not be questioned. However, the technology described can also be used by companies that create a database with copies of identity documents. Because part of the fraud sensitive data is no longer visible in the copy, the risk of fraud sensitive personal data being disseminated and misused by a hack or data breach is reduced.

[0056] While the invention has been described in terms of several embodiments, it is contemplated that alternatives, modifications, permutations and equivalents thereof will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading the specification and upon study of the drawings. The invention is not limited to the illustrated embodiments. Changes can be made without departing from the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. An identity document data protection tool comprising a mainly transparent sheet (200) attached to a non-stick liner, wherein after the sheet is removed from the non-stick liner the sheet is configured to be repeatedly attached to and detached from a specific type of identity document (100) comprising at least one unique visible personal data element (102, 104, 106), and wherein portions (202, 204, 206) of the sheet are provided with one or more copy protection elements such that a main part of the at least one unique visible personal data element can be captured by an image capturing device and a remaining part of the at least one unique visible personal data element cannot be captured by the image capturing device when the sheet is attached to the specific type of identity document and repeated detachment of the sheet does not damage the identity document.

2. The identity document data protection tool according to claim 1, wherein a first unique visible personal data element is depicted twice on the identity document by a first and a second representation (102, 104) of the first unique visible personal data element and wherein the portions (202, 204) of the transparent sheet prevent capturing of corresponding parts of each representation of the first unique visible personal data element, preferably wherein the first and second representation of the first unique visible personal data element have a dimensional ratio and wherein on the transparent sheet the portions of corresponding parts of the first and second representation have a corresponding dimensional ratio.

3. The identity document data protection tool according to any of the claims 1 - 2, wherein the identity document comprises a front side and a back side with a first unique visible personal data element on the front side and a second unique visible personal data element on the back side, wherein the sheet comprises a front side cover sheet section, a back side cover sheet section and a folding structure between the front side cover sheet section and the back side cover sheet section, the front side cover sheet section comprises at least one copy protection element to cover partially the first visible personal data element and the back side cover sheet section comprises at least one copy protection element to cover partially the second visible personal data element.

4. The identity document data protection tool according to any of the claims 1 - 3, wherein the first representation of the first unique visible personal data element is visible on the front side of the identity document and the second representation of the first unique visible personal data element is visible on the back side of the identity document, the identity document data protection tool further comprises another sheet and wherein the copy protection elements on both transparent sheets are located on substantially the same location, wherein the locations of the portions are such that when one of the sheets is attached to the front or backside of the identity document the portions prevent capturing of a similar part of the first representation or the second representation.

5. The identity document data protection tool according to any of the claims 1 - 4, wherein one side of the sheet is covered with a silicone adhesive layer.

6. The identity document data protection tool according to any of the claims 1 - 5, wherein one or more copy protection elements of the at least one of the portions of the sheet is a non-transparent ink layer provided on the sheet by means of a printing process, and/or at least one of the portions of the sheet is obtained by applying light-reflecting particles in and/or on the sheet, and/or at least one of the portions of the sheet is obtained by attaching non-transparent stickers on the sheet, and/or at least one of the portions of the transparent sheet is obtained by applying a different refractive index at locations of said at least one of the portions.

7. The identity document data protection tool according to any of the claims 1 - 6, wherein the unique visible personal data element is a string of characters having a background colour and a portion prevents capturing at least one character of the string of characters and has at least at its edges a colour corresponding to the background colour of the at least one character.

8. The identity document data protection tool according to any of the claims 1 - 7, wherein the sheet comprises an alignment marking (410) facilitating correct positioning of the one or more copy protection elements on the at least one unique visible personal data element.

9. The identity document data protection tool according to any of the claims 1 - 8, the specific type of identity document having a length and a width, wherein the sheet has a length and width which are 1 - 5 mm smaller than the length and width of the identity document, and or page of the identity document.

10. The identity document data protection tool according to any of the claims 1 - 9, wherein the sheet comprises rounded corners.

11. The identity document data protection tool according to any of the claims 1 - 9, wherein the sheet comprises at a corner a gripping aid facilitating detachment of the sheet from the identity document.

12. The identity document data protection tool according to any of the claims 1 - 11, the identity document data protection tool further comprises an instruction sheet optionally with an adhesive layer configured to be positioned on a page of a multipage identity document located opposite the page on which the transparent sheet has to be attached.

13. Passport comprising a sheet configured to overlay a page of the passport comprising at least one unique visible data element, wherein portions of the sheet are provided with copy protection elements such that a main part of the at least one unique visible data element can be captured by an image capturing device and a remaining part of the at least one unique visible data element cannot be captured by the image capturing device when the sheet is overlaying said page of the passport comprising the at least one unique visible data element.

14. Passport, according to claim 13, wherein the sheet comprises all technical features of a sheet of an identity document data protection tool according to any of the claims 1 - 12.

15. Method of protecting at least one unique visible data element on an identity document, the method comprises the actions:

- providing an identity document data protection tool according to any of the claims 1 - 12;

- removing the sheet from the non-stick liner; and

- attaching the sheet to the identity document such that a main part of the at least one unique visible data element can be captured by an image capturing device and a remaining part of the at least one unique visible data element cannot be captured by the image capturing device.

Drawing