Did you bring the right identity?

200.000 accredited passes ensure access to the right venues

Who hasn’t had the impression that the silver-haired gentleman in front of you does not quite look like the athletic young man smiling at you from his pass?

What you are doing instinctively – verifying, whether he is who he claims to be – is one of the many tasks of the games’ accreditation and access control service. All efforts to protect valuable assets or venues from unauthorized access, use or disclosure would be irrelevant if you could not make sure that only those who can pass, shall pass. Why build a fence if the gate is open?

In addition to the 200 000 accredited passes (badges) representing the “thing you have” there is a sophisticated IT system of directories, connectors and devices that links the person to the identity, performs the registration to all applications and areas and conducts authentication and authorization for each individual request – every second, every minute, every day.

With higher connectivity and accessibility, new gates are opened every day that need to be secured. Alternative ways of authentication, like fingerprint readers or facial recognition (e.g. via your smartphone camera) might improve usability, but could be another opportunity to fake.

The more you have to rely on technology to provide trust, the more you need to trust the technology.

So whoever sets up an access control system needs to include the right mix of people, devices and systems to act as eyes and ears at the fence and the gate. That gives you as accredited visitors the level of security you need to enjoy the Olympic Games.

And at the end, isn’t the Olympic Badge a great trophy to show to your friends and loved ones? The badge you protected under extreme circumstances, against the force of nature, ecstatic fans and the turmoil of celebrating the victory. You really earned it: Your Key to the Olympic Team.