The Passport Validation Service (PVS) allows organisations to validate the status of a UK passport that has been presented to them as evidence of identity. PVS confirms whether the passport details match the computerised records of a UK passport issued by the Identity and Passport Service (IPS) to confirm whether it is valid or not. If there are any queries about the document, the enquiry may be passed to other IPS departments to conduct a more thorough search of the IPS records or to a fraud team for further investigation.
In 2006, 290,996 British passports were reported lost or stolen. When someone
informs the IPS that their passport is lost or stolen, it is cancelled on
the system and the details are logged on the database of lost and stolen
passports.
IPS then notifies immigration and law enforcement agencies around the world
to try and minimise the risk of it being misused by criminals. PVS plays an
important role in this process, by validating the details of a passport presented
as proof of identity and confirm it has not been lost or stolen, organisations
are given a level of assurance that the person stood before them is in possession
of genuine documents and is not using someone else’s credentials.
Passports are increasingly attractive documents to organised criminals, hijacking someone else’s identity can help facilitate a wide range of even more serious crimes.
