Your choice of security
Andrew Nash
Managing Director, Bathford
“It is such an inspiration to know our products are helping to protect citizen identities, ensure their access to services and enable their freedom to travel to the world! ”
A multi-tonal watermark giving beautiful clarity and high image definition, a cylinder mould watermark is the most effective and widely recognised substrate security feature. Acknowledged throughout the world by Interpol, border authorities and fraud experts
High contrast, surface visible watermark that appears lighter and brighter in the sheet than its surrounding area, electrotypes are often used in conjunction with cylinder mould watermarks to add highlights and denote page numbering or other design elements
A specialist cylinder mould watermarking technique and effective anti-counterfeiting feature that delivers a combinational effect of both light and dark characters. Within the watermark create fantastic detail to complement the overall design.
Adding robustness and rigidity to avoid creasing, folding and tearing during the document reading process, these specialist cylinder mould watermarking techniques reinforce and protect the edges and corners of a passport's vitally important bio-data page
A complex, unique and tamper proof watermarking feature, designed to protect against a threat of document dismantling and reassembly, any attempt to lift or split the paper will cause the page to rupture making it totally unusable for any further activity
Chemical sensitisation dyes can be added during the paper manufacturing process. These chemical agents are invisible, but react when they come into contact with a substance used for attempted alteration, leaving a permanent and visible staining to the document
Small fibres or silks can be combined into the sheet during production to become integrated into the furnish of paper. Fibres are available in any combination of a variety of colours (including multi coloured), visible or invisible and with long- or shortrange frequency
Enhancing security, aesthetics and easy authentication, the security thread is integrated into the sheet itself during manufacture. Threads are available as embedded or windowed options, with personalised patterns or text, colour-shifts and / or dynamic movement effects
In a direct response to the escalating threats of counterfeiting, dismantling & reassembly and data alteration, passports are designed to be the most secure documents they possibly can be.
At the very foundation of a passport’s physical solution is the substrate that the document is produced from – the paper that forms the pages of the booklet, secures it to the cover and frequently contains the personal details of the passport holder.
The printed elements of the passport can be extensive.
At Portals all our papers are specially designed to ensure maximum printability, easy running and optimal performance. With our in-house team of technical experts, we will assist and advise on the most appropriate furnishes and specifications for your specific printing processes and needs.
Our papers are also specially engineered to meet all the additional functional requirements of the passport, from assembly and personalisation to readability, scanning and longevity.
Each element of the passport should complement each other and work together in a coherent manner. Our highly experienced watermark and feature designers will also work closely with the passport designers to ensure full alignment and seamless integration.
The easier it is for a document examiner to confirm the authenticity of a passport, the more secure it is deemed to be. The passport is a document that faces many threats, but most can be identified if security and tamper evidence are paramount in its specification.
Over recent years, at Portals, we have seen a growing trend to move towards a 100% wood pulp furnish or a blend with wood pulp as the predominant constituent for passport substrates. This brings several advantages, including an opportunity to enhance the security of the passport and improve its overall tamper evidence.
Watermark Clarity
A mould-made watermark is recognised as the most secure, but its presence alone is not the solution. It must have high clarity and be easily recognised. This is best achieved with the shorter fibres of wood pulp.
Fragility is strength
If the personal or issuance details of a passport have been altered, this should be easy to identify from the disturbance of paper fibres at the site of the alteration. The shorter fibres of wood pulp are less tightly bonded within the paper and more easily disturbed.
Furnish blend
With the inclusion of wood pulp to the furnish, paper manufacturers are able to delicately control and balance this blend to ensure both durability and exceptional watermark clarity are met.
Case Study
Portals played a key role in the previous two design issuances of the United Kingdom passport, directly enhancing the overall security of the books – documents that are still widely recognised as being amongst the most secure in the world.
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Launched in 2019, the design of the new EAC Republic of Rwanda ePassport was inspired by Rwanda’s rich and unique culture and known national emblems such as the seal of Rwanda and the Rwandan flag.
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As part of an upgrade to the overall design and functionality of their document, the watermark design in the Kenya East African Community (EAC) ePassport is clearly visible on the visa pages.
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Always at the forefront of passport design, The Republic of Malta's recently updated ePassport document incorporates an interwoven polycarbonate bio-data page alongside watermarked end papers and visa pages.
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The Foundations of a Passport
Passports enable us to travel anywhere in the world on holiday or for business. They give reassurance to the authorities in our home and destination countries that we are eligible to travel and our identity is genuine...
The Fundamentals of a Trusted Identity
Using a birth certificate as the source document for which the issue of other identity documents, that give greater entitlements is based, places great demands on the security and integrity of the certificate...
The Role of Furnish in a Secure Passport
When considering how to protect a passport, many issuing authorities will give significant thought to the choice of security features and the layering of these features, but sitting at the very foundation of a passport is the substrate itself...