Ship Registration

Pilots are required to register their starships with the Bureau of Ships and Services (or BoSS). Additionally, at registration, the pilot must acquire an Operating License at the cost of 1,000 credits. To be eligible for this license they must pass a written piloting test, which requires a DC 15 Intelligence (Piloting) check.

Transponder Codes

When ships are created, they are assigned a unique signal called a transponder code. Once registered with the BoSS, this signal can be used to identify that ship using the BoSS database. The transponder code can be used to identify a ship's owner, designation, make and model, as well as any registered modifications. Additionally, a transponder code can be used to access the ship's ownership history.

The transponder code is built into the ship's sublight engines, making any attempt to remove or alter it incredibly difficult; failing an attempt could damage or destroy a ship's engines.

The Bureau of Ships and Services

The Bureau of Ships and Services (BoSS) is a long-standing, impartial, third-party galactic organization that manages all data related to the massive number of starships present in the galaxy. The BoSS has stood for thousands of years due to their ability to stay neutral in conflicts. Information on a ship's ownership and its captains certifications are kept on file at the BoSS at all times. The data is distributed to spaceports upon request, but it is an expensive and slow process. As a result of this, smaller spaceports rarely update their registries more than once a year. The security on BoSS computer systems is of the highest caliber money can buy, making it almost impossible to access without proper authorization codes.