I always assumed, that muses send from the general ID of the ego and don't need a fake ID seperately. I mean its a program that runs in your mesh inserts, so why wouldn't it?

I think that MUSEs use the same mesh ID as the person they're attached to. And it's easy to route through a disposable ecto that is generating false IDs and stealthing the signal.

Hmm... Mesh ID is not tied to your Ego ID, Mesh ID is tied to your Mesh Insert, and your MUSE resides in that, and you just create fakes if needed. And pretty much everything has a Mesh ID unless they've been deliberately made without that (if it can interact with the mesh, it has a Mesh ID). You, the person, don't have a mesh ID, but your inserts do. You can get fake Ego IDs via the black market, which involve registering a fake persona with a station (although many of them are known to be havens for that), and changing the Nanotat ID on your fingertip to reflect that.

No, Nanotat ID is based off your Ego ID. If you look at Panopticon, you have two things: Brainprint or Digital Code (Digital code is used for AIs, AGIs, Infomorphs, and backups). Your Ego ID is these, combined with your known history and data (Name, Gender, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Place of Residence, etc). Your Nanotat ID is your Ego ID imprinted into your fingertip, minus any info that's not required. Infomorphs housed in anything other than a morph get their digital code checked, while bio and synthmorphs get their Nanotat ID checked. If the security check is more rigorous, you get a quick brainprint scan, taking 5 minutes for biomorphs and a few seconds for synth and infomorphs, and the results are checked against the local database. Morph looks don't really enter into it, except for when you're looking for somebody, but nanotat or brainsprint is always used for ID verification.

Apparently it's really tiny and most doors are opening by a command sent through the mesh anyways. "This door, open." and it opens, unless it's locked.

ID nanotats include information on the company that did the resleeving, so that the data may be accessed and verified with their records online. The data on the nanotat is also cryptographically signed with the company’s public key, meaning that anyone who checks the data and the signature online can tell if the data has been altered. If the nanotat is cryptographically signed with the company's public key, that means that anyone using the nanotat would have to have acquired not only an exact duplicate of your nanotat, but also an exact duplicate of your morph. So if you want to steal someone’s identity via their nanotat, they have to go to extreme lengths to do so.

As described on pg. 279 of the core rulebook: Ego ID is just a serial number. It's like your driver's license or social security number. And just like your driver's license or social security number, your Ego ID is associated with you in various databases -- citizenship, legal status, credit accounts, licensing, etc. Instead of ID cards, however, your ego ID is associated with you in two ways: First, a digital copy is stored in your infomorph. Second, resleeving clinics are legally bound to nanotattoo the ID onto your finger. In addition, these nanotattoos contain nanobots containing encrypted information associated with your ego ID. The amount of information included varies depending on the habitat: In some cases it'll basically be equivalent to what's on your driver's license. In other cases it'll be equivalent to carrying around your complete legal, medical, and credit history. Is this a security risk? Hypothetically. But since the information is encrypted, it's actually more secure than the packet of identification documents you're currently carrying in your wallet.

NewtonPulsifer wrote:

If I just copy the data on your nanotat, wipe my own nanotat, and copy that data to my nanotat how would a nanotat reader know the difference between us?

Well, it's cryptographically signed and associated with your specific morph. So you've got to crack the encryption, get access to my tattoo, copy the tattoo's information, alter the tattoo to make it look like I resleeved into your morph, re-encrypt it, and then place it on your own finger. And it'll still fail to verify unless you've also hacked into the master databases. That's obviously not impossible. But it's tougher than just "copying the data to your nanotat". It's a little like saying, "What's to stop my from photocopying your driver's ID and putting the copy in my wallet?" Except, in addition to all the other logistical problems that scheme has, the information on my license is encrypted and anyone using it for identification purposes will cross-check it with an encrypted, centralized database.

To elaborate my confusion: From my cursory reading it seems nanotat ids are *not* necessarily encrypted - but "encoded" (whatever that means exactly, that could mean a barcode), and are cryptographically signed by a public key to verify they have not been tampered with. They can be read with an ID Scanner as an "automatic affair". Rewriting a nanotat id is easily done, but the encryption must be cracked or it will fail its authorization online (from pg 280). This is the part I'm stuck on. Why would it fail the authorization online if the data is a bit for bit exact copy? It should work perfectly fine. [i]An exact copy has not been tampered with.[/i] Also, helpful posters have said a nanotat id is "associated with your specific morph" but I don't understand how that works either. Stuff from books: ID Scanner: This small hand-held device is used to read the nanotat IDs carried by most morphs. It scans the nanobots, decodes the data, and compares the information against linked online databases. To truly be effective, this device must have mesh access to ID databases. [Low] Nanotat IDs Verifying a nanotat ID with an ID scanner is an automatic affair. Morphs that have had their nanotat ID erased or that never had one in the first place are likely to be viewed with extreme suspicion. Morphs using nanotat ID flux nanoware are unlikely to be questioned; the deception can only be detected under close medical scrutiny with a Medicine: Nanomedicine Test. NANOTAT SCANS Special encoded nanobots are used to create a small nanotat on a person’s index finger. These nanobots contain encoded information that includes their name and identity, brainwave pattern, citizenship/legal status, credit account number, insurance information, and licenses. Depending on the local habitat laws, it may include other information such as criminal history, travel history, restricted implants, employment records, and so on. This nanotat may be read by anyone with a special ID scanner that reads the nanobot encoding. ID nanotats include information on the company that did the resleeving, so that the data may be accessed and verified with their records online. The data on the nanotat is also cryptographically signed with the company’s public key, meaning that anyone who checks the data and the signature online can tell if the data has been altered. ALTERING NANOTAT IDS Special nanobot treatments may be manufactured to erase, rewrite, or replace nanotat IDs. Erasing a nanotat is easy, but not having one is a crime and immediate grounds for suspicion in many habitats. Rewriting a nanotat is also easy, though this means that the nanotat will fail its authorization online unless the encryption has also been cracked (p. 254). Replacing a nanotat ID with a fake one is just as possible and is part of the process of acquiring a fake ID.

NewtonPulsifer wrote:

From my cursory reading it seems nanotat ids are *not* necessarily encrypted - but "encoded"

Not to be dismissive here, but the word "encryption" is used explicitly on pg. 280 of the core rulebook. In fact, you QUOTE it in this very same message. So if you're still "confused" despite multiple people thoroughly explaining it to you, I recommend reading thoroughly and for comprehension instead of settling for your obviously inadequate "cursory" non-comprehension.

Justin Alexander wrote:

It's a little like saying, "What's to stop my from photocopying your driver's ID and putting the copy in my wallet?" Except, in addition to all the other logistical problems that scheme has, the information on my license is encrypted and anyone using it for identification purposes will cross-check it with an encrypted, centralized database.

I'm curious why you think this is a good example. If I did have an exact copy of your driver's ID, I could use it. Whether there is only a cryptographic signature with the data unencrypted or if the entire thing is encrypted with a cryptographic key only stored in nanotat id readers is of no import to me. If a driving enforcement officer wanted my nanotat ID (and insisted on reading off the nanotatto on my finger in person with a nanotat ID reader), I would just use the ID I duplicated from you. It would run through and verify as a valid ID just fine.

And we're back full circle where you see why I assumed a nanotat id would include physical description information, here's the comment earlier in the thread: http://eclipsephase.com/comment/32226#comment-32226 Seems you agree with me.

Justin Alexander wrote:

Are there two different people using the NewtonPulsifer account to post? Because the guy writing posts #8 and #23 appears to be a completely different guy than the one writing posts #16 and #21.

So there's a case of possible ID theft? Best do a brainscan!