Ellison offers software for ID cards

Oracle's chairman and CEO Larry Ellison has reportedly offered to help the US government develop a national identification card, aimed at preventing future terrorist attacks, by donating the software.

In an interview with San Francisco television station KPIX, Ellison said the government should issue each US citizen with a national ID card containing a photograph and digitised thumbprint

According to the San Jose Mercury, Ellison said the information on the ID card would help airport security officials verify the cardholder on a centralized database, ensuring airline passengers are accurately identified.

As the debate continues about creating a national ID card system based on the existing Social Security card, it seems Larry Ellison is touting Oracle's database system as the forerunner to clinch the deal.

Ellison might be offering the software for free, but the move would capture a large market and push Oracle's database software into potentially lucrative new markets.