Here at ID Edge we believe that a custom-printed ID card is one of the best ways to keep your organization secure. However, printing the card is just one part of the process. In order to keep the card protected and prevent forgery by criminals, additional steps must be taken to make it difficult to alter or duplicate.
In this educational installment, we will look at the role holographic images can play in reducing fraud and boosting your security.
What is a Holographic Image?
A holographic image is a very good security measure that creates an additional image layer on the card. However, because it can only be seen at a certain angle, the holographic image doesn’t interfere with the visibility of other information on the card.
Why are Holographic Cards More Secure?
There are several reasons why a card with a holographic overlay is more secure than a card without it:
- Firstly, if an employee loses their card (or it is stolen) and someone tries to alter the photo, it will be virtually impossible to do because it will inevitably alter the holographic image. Thus, the stolen ID card is pretty much useless to the thief.
- Secondly, duplicating the card becomes much more difficult, because the criminal must create a copy that has the same exact holographic image, with the right positioning on the card.
Holographic Laminates
When it comes to adding holographic images to ID cards, you have several options. Many ID Edge customers opt for special laminates that have pre-printed holographic images. For example, we offer laminates with holographs of a globe, snowflakes, and a variety of other images.
The good news is that you don’t even need a laminating printer to use some of these laminates. For example, some of our customers rely on self adhesive laminates that have such images, and have had great success with this option. It’s especially helpful for organizations that have a limited budget and have not been able to upgrade to a laminating printer yet.
Holographic Cards without Laminates
For added security, some organizations choose to utilize overlay printing during the card creation process to create custom images. If you’ve ever used a YMCKO ribbon, the “O” stands for “overlay.” This great feature is currently available on a few select printers and allows you to create a clear layer on top of the card with a watermark of your choice.
Using a custom watermark makes it that much harder for a criminal to create a believable duplicate of the card. This can be even more effective if the overlay uses different images for different departments within your organization.
Additionally, some organizations take this a step further and use UV images and text in addition to watermarks, to create another deterrent.
Increased Profitability
In addition to improving organizational security, holographs and watermarks can be very effective for reducing fraud at venues. For example, these security measures can be added to season passes at resorts, to make it harder for individuals to share passes.
Even if a ticket costs a few hundred dollars, it’s not economically feasible for someone to buy an ID card printer and the associated laminates just to duplicate a pass for their friends.
How to Get Started
If you’d like to use holographic images to protect your ID cards or passes, we can help. Our expert technicians can help you choose the best and the most cost-effective option for your needs.
We can even help you figure out if your ID printer is capable of printing overlays, and can help you set up your software and printer drivers to do this.
Just give us a call at (800) 798-3343, or send us an email through the Contact Form, below!