Biometric passport

A biometric passport, also known as an e-passport or ePassport, is a combined paper and electronic passport that contains biometric information that can be used to authenticate the identity of travelers. It uses contactless smart card technology, including a microprocessor chip (computer chip) and antenna (for both power to the chip and communication) embedded in the front or back cover, or center page, of the passport. The passport's critical information is both printed on the data page of the passport and stored in the chip. Public key infrastructure (PKI) is used to authenticate the data stored electronically in the passport chip-making it virtually impossible to forge when all security mechanisms are fully and correctly implemented.