The FT and other media have reported that the Prime Minister is planning to bring in digital IDs. It is hoped that this will help to reduce illegal migration. Everyone in the UK would need to have a passport or other digitised identity document.
Reportedly a Government spokesperson said “We are committed to using tech to make it easier for people to interact with the state, learning from other countries on how best to deliver this for citizens”. The UK is one of the few countries that does not have a secure digital ID scheme. Most of Europe does for example.
There will undoubtedly be strong opposition to such a scheme from a minority of the population who are paranoid about concealing or protecting their identity. But what’s my view? I think it is time to introduce digital IDs. They would help to prevent identity theft and fraud and we already have numerous forms of digital identity held by different organisations, including the Government. Having a unified system would assist immigration and law enforcement operations and protect my personal identification.
A related issue that has arisen recently is the use of VPNs (virtual private network software) to conceal your digital IDs on the internet. This is not something new – I have had some VPN software on my laptop for over 10 years to hide my id when using it in a public place such as a hotel. It prevents interception of my emails and web browsing data.
There is a petition on change.org that supports the use of VPNs – see https://www.change.org/p/protect-the-right-to-use-vpns-in-the-uk?
And this quote is in it from Tom Wiersma: “VPNs are the only way in which data to and from my systems becomes more difficult to hack. That data may contain financial, health or other private data which no one has the right to access. VPNs essentially make my on-line activity safe.”
It would be a shame if the Government tried to ban or restrict the use of VPNs.
Roger Lawson (Twitter: https://x.com/RogerWLawson )
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I think you don’t appreciate what will lead to. Blair attempted to introduce this years aga and, as he is in a position of considerable influence in the current Government in which all senior Ministers are, like Blair, members of the Fabian Society.
Perhaps you should need where this will lead. An example is Vietnam where a year ago citizens were told yo Register for Digital ID which was a requirement if you had a Bank account or wished to access Public Services. Some people ignored it and so the Vietnamese Government has, without warning, close 86 million bank accounts of those who were not registered and seized the money therein.
It sounds appealing. According to the Government it will stop illegal immigration, child porn and, like the Panacea Society, Crime and Banditry will disappear once we all enrol leading to the New World Order as proposed in the UN Agenda 2030.
I hope that people don’t fall for it. This Government doesn’t have our intents at heart.