PERSONAL IDENTIFICATION IS RAPIDLY BECOMING A SCIENCE PERFORMED BY COMPUTERS TO IDENTIFY PERSONS USING CREDIT CARDS, EMPLOYEES REPORTING FOR WORK, AND STUDENTS USING CAMPUS FACILITIES. THE USE OF CHECK-CASHING CARDS, GASOLINE AND BANK CREDIT CARDS, THE DRIVER'S LICENSE, AND THE NONDRIVER'S LICENSE IS EXAMINED. BUSINESS OR TRANSACTION IDENTIFICATION, MESSAGE AUTHENTICATION, POLICE IDENTIFICATION, AND ACCESS CONTROL ARE CONSIDERED ALONG WITH SUCH TOPICS AS THE RIGHT TO REMAIN ANONYMOUS, THE CHALLENGE OF AUTHORITY, REACTION TO FINGERPRINTS AND IDENTIFYING ALIENS. THE IDENTIFICATION PROCESS AND BASIC METHODS OF IDENTIFICATION ARE HIGHLIGHTED, FOLLOWED BY DETAILS OF A VARIETY OF SPECIFIC SYSTEMS SUCH AS LATENT FINGERPRINTS, AUTOMATED FINGERPRINT SYSTEMS, AND INKLESS GRAPHIC FINGERPRINTS. FOR INSTANCE, IDENTIFICATION OF VOICE CHARACTERISTICS ENTAILS KNOWLEDGE OF THE REQUIREMENTS OF A VOICE IDENTIFICATION SYSTEM, ACCESS CONTROL BY VOICE, AND STRESS ANALYSIS. MATERIAL CONCERNING SIGNATURES AND HANDWRITING COVERS INFORMATION ON HANDWRITING CHARACTERISTICS, DISGUISED SIGNATURES AND FORGERIES, AND DEVICES TO AID SIGNATURE COMPARISON. IN DISCUSSING IDENTIFICATION CARDS, THE VOLUME EXPLORES SUCH INNOVATIVE SUBJECTS AS CARDS WITH MAGNETIC SPOTS, AREAS, OR STRIPES; CARDS WITH METALLIC SLUGS; INFRARED AND ULTRAVIOLET ENCODED CARDS; OPTICAL (VISUAL BAND) ENCODED CARDS; AND PROXIMITY CARDS. ALSO CONSIDERED ARE PASSWORD MANAGEMENT; ENCRYPTION, CODES, AND CIPHERS; REVERSIBLE AND IRREVERSIBLE CIPHERS; PASSWORDS IN SHARED-COMPUTER NETS; AND A NEW VERSION OF PIN (PERSONAL IDENTIFICATION NUMBER). FINALLY, DISCUSSION OF IDENTIFICATION BY FACIAL FEATURES INCLUDES COMPUTER RECOGNITION OF FACES AND USE OF GRAPHIC AIDS. THE TEXT IS AUGMENTED BY NUMEROUS ILLUSTRATIONS, SKETCHES, CHARTS, AND CHAPTER-BY-CHAPTER BIBLIOGRAPHIES. AN INDEX IS PROVIDED. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED--PRG)