How does a smart card-based healthcare ID card protect my personal healthcare information?
The embedded chip in a smart card can hold various types of information in electronic form. The smart card can protect your information with sophisticated encryption algorithms and can allow access only by authorized readers; other smart cards may provide a key that unlocks a particular database on a particular computer. Smart card technology also allows the use of multi-factor authentication, requiring the use of a second security factor such as a personal identification number (PIN), or a biometric (e.g., a fingerprint) in order to allow access to your personal healthcare information. All smart cards have the capability to provide strong authentication, digital signatures, and security through encryption.
