Government Wants To Control Your Digital IdentityAs states continue to implement digital ID systems, it is essential that they build tools in ways that inherently protect civil liberties rather than asking citizens to just trust government officials.
LUKE HOGG
7.25.2023
In many states, Americans can now ditch their physical wallet and verify their identity simply by tapping their device on a scanner. And just as digital wallets from Apple and Google have made commerce more convenient, digital ID systems could potentially make government interactions faster and more efficient. But they also raise the ominous specter of government surveillance. Can we have the efficiency of a digital ID without letting government track our every move?
Yes, but that's not the path we're on.
Take Colorado. Since 2019, Coloradans have been able to use a digital ID as a legal form of personal identification throughout the state. Users download an application to their smartphone, enroll in the service, and have their identity authenticated by taking photos or videos of a valid ID card or other government issued documents to prove that they are who they claim to be. Then that information is encrypted, and the user is granted a digital ID and an associated key or code that serves as an identifier.
Colorodans can simply show their digital ID to verify their identity in much the same way as you would show your driver's license to a bartender to prove you are over 21. That means of verifying identity is relatively private. However, many services, both public and private, are increasingly turning to electronic verification, which requires pinging a government server. This ping creates a data record outlining who, what, when, and where. Over time, these records create a government-controlled ledger of information about its citizens.
Built and maintained by third-party vendors, Colorado Digital ID collects troves of information from users. As outlined in the privacy policy for myColorado, the app collects data "including, but not limited to your IP address, device ID and browser type," and information on the "general geographic area" of the user. The privacy policy further details that the government shares information with third-party service providers and, much more concerningly, with law enforcement and other government agencies upon request.
The fundamental flaw in digital ID systems like Colorado's is that they are centralized. In order to work, citizens must trust the government to protect their data from malevolent actors and from the state itself, despite the fact that government agencies have not been good stewards of citizen data.
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Source:
https://reason.com/2023/07/25/government-wants-to-control-your-digital-identity/
