Equifax offers I-Card for the ‘digital wallet’

Equifax Inc., the provider of consumer-credit information, unveiled an online information card aimed at encouraging businesses to support a “digital wallet” identification system to protect against fraud.

The information card, or I-Card, is an Internet equivalent of a driver’s license or passport, Atlanta-based Equifax said. Customers with the Equifax I-Card can install software called digital wallet that enables one-click sign-in via a personal computer, said Steven Ely, president of Equifax Personal Information Solutions.

“I-Cards are really the next generation of Web tools that allow users to use a single sign-on approach so they can use one card at multiple Web sites,” Ely said in an interview. “We expect the marketplace to completely shift away from user IDs and passwords to the use of I-Cards.”

Consumers won’t be charged for the cards, Ely said. Revenue will come from the sale of technology to businesses, which will verify identities and help customers complete online forms, he said.

About 8.1 million people in the United States were victimized by identity theft in 2007, Equifax said, citing Javelin Strategy & Research. The average loss was $5,574. Losses from online fraud rose 21 percent to $239.1 million in 2007, the FBI said, citing the Internet Crime Complaint Center.

Managing identification data for individuals and businesses generates “dozens of millions of dollars” for Equifax and revenue could “substantially” increase in coming years, Ely said.

“We have made a strategic decision to invest in developing products to significantly grow our footprint in the identity management space,” Ely said.