Smartcards are credit card sized plastic cards which are embedded with an electronic chip. This chip contains memory as well as a processor. The processor runs a tamper proof Operating system designed especially for smartcards. The chip can not only store information but also process it. The card data is transacted via a smartcard reader that is connected to a computer. The data inside the chip can be accessed through the access control protocols defined in the operating system. The memory size of the cards is typically of the order of 4KB to 150 KB. Smartcards are being used in many applications today such as healthcare, banking, ticketing etc. The processor inside the smardcard can be 8-bit or 32 bit processor. The OS resides in the ROM of the processor. In addition they also have cryptographic processors. There is a well defined file system. With the file system, access conditions, micro processor, ROM etc., a smartcard is just like a mini computer embedded in a chip.

Based on card technologies the cards can be divided in three types -- contact cards,contactless cards and dual interface or hybrid cards.The contact cards have contact pads to interact with the readers, the contactless cards have antenna and the dual interface cards have both. The processor inside the smardcard can be 8-bit or 32 bit processor. The OS resides in the ROM of the processor. In addition they also have cryptographic processors. There is a well defined file system. With the file system, access conditions, micro processor, ROM etc., a smartcard is just like a mini computer embedded in a chip. Based on card technologies the cards can be divided in three types -- contact cards, cards and dual interface or hybrid cards. The contact cards have contact pads to interact with the readers, the contactless cards have antenna and the dual interface cards have both.

India is taking a major initiative in the implementation of smartcards in various applications. A standard by the name of SCOSTA has been defined for the smartcards used in India. IIT K along with NIC has worked to pen down the complete standards of Operating systems for smartcards which has been termed SCOSTA. SCOSTA stands for Smart Card Operating System for Transport Applications and is the operating system specification for smart cards to be used as vehicle registration cards and drivers license cards in India. Since the standards were initially developed for Transport application and hence the name, but otherwise the specifications are generic and are being used in various applications. SCOSTA specifications are compliant with some relevant ISO 7816 standards for smartcards. As mentioned above, the electronic chip embedded in a smartcard is loaded with an OS especially designed and implemented for smartcards.

This Operating system must follow the specifications defined in ISO standards. For smartcards to be used in India,the Operating system must be SCOSTA compliant. IIT K in collaboration with NIC provided a definition to this SCOSTA standard and a reference implementation. The SCOSTA standards have been recommended for all applications such as the National ID program, driving licence, vehicle registration, e-passport, health insurance etc. All Vehicle Registration and Drivers License cards issued in India will have to stick to this standard to ensure national interoperability. IIT Kanpur has taken a lead in developing an operating system for contact smartcards which is SCOSTA compliant. It is being used in vehicle registration and driving license in many states all over the country.

Recently IIT K has developed operating system for contact less Smart cards which is SCOSTA compliant and is being referred to as SCOSTA CL. It supports many additional features such as - Secure Messaging, supports many protocols for interacting with cards such as T=0, T=1 and T=CL. This operating system works for contact, contact less and dual interface cards.

For the operating system for the contact less cards, it should be ensured that the OS is compliant with the ISO standards and the ICAO standards (these are standards for machine readable data in an electronic passport). For the development of a robust and bug free operating system, thorough testing is an essential requirement. To facilitate and standardize the process of testing of operating systems for smartcards which are SCOSTA compliant, a Smart Card Testing Tool (STTool) has been developed here at IIT Kanpur. This tool is being extensively used by various groups which are working on the development of the OS for smartcards in India. They are also being used by the ministry to test the operating systems developed by various companies and provide them with SCOSTA certification.

SCOSTA CL (the operating system for contactless cards developed at IIT Kanpur) will be used in e-passports in India.An e-passport makes the document machine-readable making the passport not only tamper-proof but also enabling quick processing at airports. An IC chip is embedded in the back cover of the e-passport with built in biometric feature.

Many smartcard related projects are undergoing at IIT Kanpur under the guidance of Prof. Rajat Moona. These are being sponsored by the ministry of India and also by corporate sector. There are a number of clients who have signed MOUs with IIT K regarding buying the Operating system for smartcards and also developing various applications involving smartcards. Some specific readers for smartcards are also being designed here. These will be stand alone units which will not require a computer to connect to. Apart from this there are many students involved in these projects. Smartcard initiatives being taken for the IIT K campus are also worth mentioning.

The students and employees here have a smartcard based ID card system. There is a Master ID card which is used to create the ID cards for the students and employees of IIT Kanpur. The dependents of employees and students can also be issued ID cards under this system. This master card writes cryptographic keys in the cards of the users which makes these cards authentic and there is no way they can be duplicated. Each person is issued a smartcard as ID card. This ID card is being used in different applications in the campus such as : marking attendance of students and employees, and creating memberships for the campus swimming pool. It is also being used as an e-purse application by charging it with cash and then using it for dispensing beverages. Presently work is going on the development of Health cards, Metro rail ticketing and many other applications.