The state of Saskatchewan is a member of Digital ID & Authentication Council of Canada since the March of 2020 and has been considering implementing a Digital ID system in the province. In its current standing Alberta already has a similar application implemented. The intended purpose of this system is to speed up the government processes. Rather then to wait for an authentication code or visiting a registry office, a citizen can access to government in a fast manner from the comfort of their homes. This feature by itself certainly does not appear to cause any harm and would make the people of Saskatchewan’s lives easier. But when considering the implementation of such a system we shouldn’t look over what it means for the future.
In its current standing the Digital ID system would just enable the access of an individual to his/her government services online, and the use of this feature is completely optional as anyone who does not want to use it can instead just do it the “old” way. But it is not hard to see this promise of options disappearing shortly after Digital ID proves itself functional as it would render the expenses caused by other means unnecessary. But even then what trouble could it cause for the society at that point in time. Nothing much really. But while providing a means to make interactions between the citizen and the government easier, Digital ID also provides a foundation for a system that can legally keep track of an individual’s daily interactions online and record them. Now that you can be legally identified online to interact with the government, in the upcoming years it is much easier to link your identification not just to your car registration request you make on the online registry but also to any random article you read.
The problem is not the government having your identification information (They already do as they are supposed to) or it choosing an online storefront for its services. The problem is any government entity having control or access to anything that does not concern them in a functional sense. In the future, implementations like Digital ID could make it much harder for an average citizen to keep his/her online interactions a private affair. This would alter our behavior, making the society itself less free as a whole, since people tend to act differently under supervision than they would have without it even though their actions wouldn’t be a misconduct or a crime. They might be ashamed of someone else having knowledge of their lives or even worse they could be avoiding unjust prosecution.
Of course the government is not the enemy but we shouldn’t forget that it is not the master either. And no, Digital ID is not gonna transform Saskatchewan into communist Russia and probably is something that needs to be implemented one way or another. We are living in a digital age after all. The point I want to emphasize is that it is indeed an existing threat that harmless implementations such as Digital ID could evolve to be tools of intrusion and authoritarianism and it is up to the individual to keep this from happening by exercising their democratic rights to keep the government out of places where they have no business.
Sources:
Big Brother Scott Moe plans to reduce what little privacy we have left – MooseJawToday.com
Well written post! I agree with the points you make here: Obviously having an online system isn’t immediately going to turn Saskatchewan into a Communist state, but as citizens we do have a responsibility to ensure that any tools that the government implements are implemented with the proper restrictions, and that if those restrictions are ignored by the government then of course there must be consequences.
One of the dangers of the digital ID is that it could be very easy link online activity to individuals without anyone knowing or realizing it. For any who might ask “How likely is this to actually happen though? Surely the government wouldn’t do that… ” My response would be to remind them that the government has already done something very similar: https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/canadas-public-health-agency-admits-it-tracked-33-million-mobile-devices-during-lockdown
Very insightful post, I like how you gave an opinion on both sides. Personally, I think a Digital ID would be a very good idea. It just makes everything so much more convenient. The only issue I can see with it is that an average person would likely not be careful in protecting their ID, and this could make them vulnerable to identity theft. A fix would probably be to find a more effective way to authenticate a user, and make sure that it is really them using their ID. This was a really cool post, I like this idea.
Great post. I think the heart of the issue is in the overall distrust we have for the government. That’s not to say it’s unwarranted, however. I can completely visualize the reality where the government doesn’t tap into that data until it ‘needs’ to for whatever reason that may be. It might be justified, but I personally am not a fan of a reality where my digital information might act as ammunition for one purpose or another. That said, the convenience would certainly be nice. I’d just like to see proof of secure cryptographic technologies being put into place before I engage with that type of system more than necessary.
Nice post. I think there are always going to be vulnerabilities when transferring from physical to digital. I think the cons in this case, would be the ability for databases to get leaked and thus it could be easier for certain groups to imitate other people’s identities. However digital also poses a greater convenience in a technological world. I think transitions like these are inevitable at some point in time, just maybe not at this very moment. Furthermore, a large issue is trusting those who regulate these IDs, such as government corporations.
You raised a very good point. Having a Digital ID would make things easier, I can even see a future where all we have is our phones with every piece of identification on it as we need (healthcare card, drivers license, SIN card, credit card, debit card, etc.), but this definitely leaves huge risks out in the open, one of them definitely being how the government will probably try and track as many people as they can through their Digital ID (although I feel like they can do that now, but maybe with less efficiency). I wonder how many people will adopt a version of a Digital ID in the future, as I can definitely see it being a very intriguing convenience when it comes to dealing with any registration/government stuff (just think of how frustrating going to the Registry can be versus being able to do all that from the convenience of your own home).
My biggest concern after reading the post is if the government has a proper implementation to protect citizen identity from foreign attacks. The war in Ukraine showed just how fragile the online infrastructures are and every day someone is taking down or stealing private information online. Concerning Canadians, I think if this is not fully secured, it will be a matter of time before all information about Canadians will be released online and the possible disaster it can pose such as identity theft, etc. I think this is an overall good direction to take, but without proper barriers in place can result in a gigantic failure.
This was an interesting read. It’s already been seen in some countries that protestors are tracked by traffic and surveillance cameras. With what you brought up in your post, it would not be a stretch to assume that certain governments may be inclined to spy on their citizens’ net history. As such, it could result in the government dealing with potentially radical movements before they have a chance to gain real influence. Fun stuff!
Interesting post. I hadn’t heard of digital ID before this but it definitely seems like a pretty useful thing to have in the future. It just seems like using a digital ID is going to be much more convenient for everyone instead of having to wait in those long lines at the registry. I do agree with you that it is a problem if the government is able to monitor us more with this use of digital IDs. Many people don’t trust the government as much as they used to so this is definitely going to be a deal-breaker for many. I think in the future if Alberta wants to use digital ID as well, there should be a vote to see how many people actually want it or not.
Good post, I agree that a digital id and more of our information becoming digital in general would be very convenient and helpful. But as you bring up we also have to be concerned about the potential of having less privacy with the government having easy access to our online history. Although if the government really wanted to they probably already could do that anyways this would just be making it easier for them. We’d also have to be concerned about potential cyberattacks or hackers with even more of our info online with identity theft already being a problem.
Good post! I agree that the government shouldn’t have complete and total access to the private lives of the citizens. Even though some of the information is necessary for public safety, individuals should have the right to privacy. Moreover, the information could also be hacked during a cyberwar if there is a significant vulnerability within the system. Bottom line is that the Digital ID information should be collected in a limited capacity and guarded with the highest level of safety. Governments wanting to snoop into their citizens’ private lives needs to stop. I believe citizens should be more actively against this.
I remember how Edward Snowden exposed how the US government had been invading everyone’s privacy via the patriot act and the fact that everyone just shrugged it under the rug was disappointing because there was not sufficient uproar regarding it. People in the west have always had a sense of privilege knowing that they were not under any authoritarian rule like in China or North Korea and even though I do not believe that would happen in places like Canada, it is still a slippery slope.
It was an interesting read. Our overall mistrust of government, in my opinion, is at the core of the problem. We’ve already seen how corrupted the government can be. Furthermore, I believe that while going from physical to digital, there will always be problems. The negative, in this situation, I feel, would be the possibility of databases being hacked, making it easier for some parties to impersonate other people’s identities, but we will eventually need to digitise everything in our lives. So, while I agree this is a positive path to go in general, without sufficient boundaries in place, it could lead to a massive failure.
Interesting post! I remember hearing about Digital ID in Ontario a few months ago and now it seems like its gaining traction. I personally would love if Digital ID was a thing in Alberta, I’ve been using my phone for almost all my purchases or payments when going out and maybe once or twice I couldn’t use it. I do think Alberta is gearing up towards it with the introduction of MyAlberta Digital ID which is needed to access government forms like COVID vaccinations etc.
Interesting topic! Vaccination cards, academic degrees, occupational licenses, employee ID, and other identification and credentials are easier to deal with when they’re digital. However, this extremely personal data must be kept hidden and safe. Blockchain is being used by governments, corporations, and educational institutions to allow a secure and trustworthy infrastructure and improve services.
This is a very good post. Personally, I think the development of Digital Identity is necessary. First of all, we have to admit that with the development of the Internet, more and more identity authentication is conducted on the Internet. People used to have to go to a designated place to renew their passports, but now they just need to apply online through the Internet. The reason why people need an ID card is that they need an official certificate to prove their information to institutions and organizations. So back to id cards, why is the physical ID card safe? In fact, a long time ago in history, ID cards were not very reliable information, because people had many ways to change the information on id cards. But with the development of technology, it has become increasingly difficult to forge a physical ID card. It can be seen that the fundamental problem of Digital Identity is not implementation, but how it can be as difficult to change as physical ID card.
I think digital ids are the trend of the future. As long as the government can ensure proper use of the information collected by digital ID, such as daily activities, digital ID will greatly facilitate life and enhance security. The use of digital ids makes authentication information less error-prone. In addition, the direct contradiction between citizens and the government about information always exists, so we really should choose to trust the government more.
I wonder if the adoption of cryptocurrency, and decentralized P2P networks will eventually render governments obsolete in the future. This may be my sci-fi nerd side talking but I truly see this sort of thing becoming a reality. It’s tough to say whether this type of DigitalID systems will be exploited for reasons unintended, and especially becomes more threatening in times like this where political opinions are so divided. This is one of the few times that I think philosophers may serve a functional purposes (no hate on philosophy lol).
Very interesting post! The transformation of people’s identities from physical to digital brings more vulnerabilities. Before, people only needed to protect their ID cards and watch out for thieves. After the transformation into network identity information, if the government does not do a good job of protection, that people’s information will be greatly threatened, hackers only need to steal people’s identity information at home computer, and we have no way to protect our identity information.
Thank you for sharing! In my opinion, I think a Digital ID is a very good idea. It makes everything so much more convenient. However, there are going to be vulnerabilities when transferring from physical to digital. Digital ID will make it easier for hackers to steal more of our online information, and identity theft has become a problem. The government should take better precautions to protect citizens’ information security.
An interesting post. I think its also important to always keep in mind the tradeoffs that we collectively agree or disagree with in the name of convenience or expediency. It would no doubt be quite difficult to convince people to go from an online system to one where you need to go into an office, or make physical copies, or anything else that would take significantly longer. And yet this is one major way that societies become more and more complacent with the freedoms that they do have, and how those freedoms eventually become restricted and impotent.
Very interesting post! My issue is while in the right hands, there are a lot of good that could be gained from a Digital identity, but once it gets into the wrong hands the bad will be really bad. So this is a situation where you have to weight the consequences and the benefits to see if it is really worth it.
Great post! Seeing both perspectives as you very nicely mentioned, there is benefits and negatives to Digital Id’s. There are often a lot of seniors or individuals who have trouble navigating the digital world alongside the privacy matters you mentioned. Also just taking into account the individuals who reacted very loudly and negatively to vaccines claiming it was “tracking” I can’t help but wonder how they would react here. I personally see how a digital Id can be beneficial and am in support as we are moving rather vastly towards the digitalization of our daily lives, I think there is a sociological point of view to consider.
In this technological era, it is expected that there will be a push for everything to become digital. The problem is however, that it will give governments too much control over our information. This could give them an incredible amount of control which could be very problematic.
This is a great post! I agree that with the current implementation of Digital IDs, life is definitely easier. It seems like accessing governmental institutions through offices or phone calls wastes a lot of time in most cases, and getting the option to do all that online is useful. However, if our other interactions such as activity on social media, shopping habits, etc. are all linked to our Digital IDs, that reminds me a whole lot of the phrase “Big Brother is Watching”. Overall an interesting post!
In the current age of convenience it does not come as a surprise that numerous governments have adopted the use of some form of digital identification. Besides the immediate benefit of convenience for the average citizen, I would imagine that this would speed up processes within the government as well. However, a valid concern discussed in this post is the fact that information concerning non-government services could also be acquired. What could be done with such information is left to the imagination, but regardless, information about your digital interactions could end up in the hands of others without your consent and knowledge. Whether a person finds that the pros outweigh this potential risk or not would depend on how much trust a person has in their government and how accessible government services are.
It is possible that as a society continues to embrace the usage of a Digital ID, the more inaccessible (due to decreased demand) many in-person government services will become. From how our world is changing, I can only imagine that tools such as digital identification will only be increasingly adopted.
In general I think there are enough options to make a digital ID safe, for a login you could for example scan your ID-card, then enter a pin and scan your fingerprint. Obviously, this would require some additional hardware (card and fingerprint reader), but I would rather once get these and then not have to deal with waiting times at Registries.
About the decreased anonymity online, I have been thinking about this topic for a long time but cannot seem to really form a strong opinion. I think having a duty to portray your real name on social media (or have it verified in the background) could resolve a lot of online hatred and mobbing, or at least those behaving unlawful could be followed. On the other hand losing that anonymity online would certainly decrease freedom and lead to other problems, e.g. prosecuted minorities in some countries would not be able to talk about their situation online and thereby would be unable to gain attention.
Great post ! i like that you have a lot of opinions , residents should ensure that they follow what the government say . And a digital ID isn’t something bad .
Hello Marwane, if you look at my post you will see that I have not claimed digital ID to be something “bad”. The issue I wanted to emphasize lies within your response. The citizens should not blindly do what the government says. I am not rooting for anarchy or anything here. Government is necessary for the society to function, this is the reality indeed. But the citizens should always critically evaluate the actions of the authorities governing them. Otherwise you can one day find yourself behind bars after being labeled as a traitor for questioning why the head of your state has a golden urinal.
I think that for me, this would be fine. Nowadays a lot of people have become desensitized to the fact that any information or actions performed on the internet are usually not private. Not only would this make things overall easier and more convenient, but I feel as though there is not much being given up here. With that said though, perhaps being desensitized to such is not a good thing, and I think that generally when the government or law gets involved with the flow of the internet, it usually causes more damage than it does good for the users. So certainly I can see both the good and bad that could come with such, and why people would be reluctant to transition to such a system. Thank you for this interesting post!
Good post! I think digital IDs also open a new risk for cyberattacks. Nowadays, most of the time, we have to present ourselves to do governmental documents like renewing SIN, driver license registration, etc. If we can do everything online with a legal identity, then if someone gains access to our digital IDs, they can use them for such important activities even signing for loans,…
Oh great, another opportunity for a really important thing such as identification to have a very shoddy implementation that is going to end up causing a ton of damage as people find vulnerability after vulnerability.
Alright I’m done being sarcastically pessimistic, now I’m just going to be pessimistic.
I am pretty uncomfortable with the idea of Digital I.D. Sure its convenient for those few times a year that you need to provide government identification, but for the rest of the time when you don’t need to be telling the government that you exist, its just another vector for your privacy to be intruded upon. My philosophy has always sat on the idea that if I wanted to set up a system so that I could be completely anonymous without compromising my access to the internet, I could, and this is just another potential roadblock to that issue. A potential future could have you linking your identification to any new computer that you buy, potentially under the selling point of higher security and theft prevention that would inevitably directly link you to whatever you’re doing online.
Maybe I’m being too dystopian and worried about big brother watching over me, but I believe that its reasonable to argue these topics when discussing ideas related to tightly binding the real and the virtual together.
Good Post! You make a good point regarding how the implementation of a Digital ID could potentially harm digital privacy. If everyone in the country has a digital ID, then it wouldn’t be a far step for the government to begin cataloging interactions between citizens, encroaching on their privacy. This doesn’t even consider the numerous security concerns regarding a digital ID, today, even without a digital ID, identity theft is a massive issue where people have their identifying information stolen and used for malicious activity. The implementation of a digital ID would only exacerbate this issue, and I wonder whether it would be worth risking the consequences for simply bringing more government services online.
he problem is any government entity having control or access to anything that does not concern them in a functional sense. In the future, implementations like Digital ID could make it much harder for an average citizen to keep his/her online interactions a private affair
Good post! I like how you highlighted both the positives and negatives of the issue of Digital IDs. On one hand, it is very convenient in that you do not have to go to a registry or government office to contact or gain access to government services. However, on the other hand, the government would be better positioned to monitor and track an individuals activity online. Currently, I think that the Digital ID system is fine as it is easier to use government services, and tracking is not really possible. However, I think that it is important to keep an eye on the program as it develops to ensure that it doesn’t gain any invasive properties in the future.
We should also be concerned about security implications of having a digital ID. Is a digital ID more susceptible to identity theft than a physical one? Is it possible for hackers to steal your digital ID from your computer / browser, or even from it’s central database? The government should prioritize the utmost security and transparency with their practices in protecting this information.
This is an excellent article. When moving from physical to digital, I believe there will always be weaknesses. In this scenario, I believe the disadvantage would be the opportunity for databases to be leaked, making it simpler for some parties to impersonate other people’s identities. In a technology environment, however, digital also offers increased convenience. I’m curious how many individuals will embrace an Electronic ID in the future, since I can see it being a rather appealing convenience for dealing with any enrollment paperwork.
Wonderful Post, just want to mention that The United Nations (UN) and World Bank ID4D initiative aims to provide everyone on the planet with a legal identity by 2030.
I can certainly understand why something like digitalizing ID can be concerning. It was nicely put together that government is not our enemy but surely not our master as well. The disbelief that people have is because of how easily such databases can be hacked and then your identity can be used by someone else. In Bangladesh, the government implemented a same thing, they call it NID which has everything starting from birth certificate, school certificate to even land ownership documents linked to it. However, these data got stolen and even now people can buy stolen identity to commit fraud and crime. World is becoming more digital than ever before, therefore I believe that cyber security should be made stronger to protect nations and its people.
This is a very insightful post! It certainly invokes the image of Orwell’s infamous “Big Brother.” The DigitalID notion does allow users to have more direct access to government services, including their own profile, but it also does raise issues regarding safety and protection of privacy. Of course, we are living in a very technological world, and this will only be further embraced in the future. However, as we currently are and continue to transition to a digital world, we must understand that our privacy is not guaranteed, especially by government bodies. I think that at a certain point we must simply evaluate the risk vs. reward of such situations, as opposed to living in constant fear of being hacked, or having our privacy evaded.
Interesting post! It makes me think about how most people trust the government to work within the bounds of its operation, however the government also is not a monolithic entity but instead an organization comprising of many people. This leaves it open to exploitation from individuals so absolute trust in the system isn’t possible. That being said, having a digital ID to tie to our online presence is already done on many scales other than government and I highly doubt that the information compiled online about us isn’t being sold to any government entities. So overall, I would say that the coming of Digital IDs has more pros than cons since a majority of the cons are already taking place.
Very good points made here. We are in the digital age and I think it is important to start making steps towards ease of access with things such as this. Who wouldn’t want fewer fees to pay right? Identification systems are a good start. However, with ease of access and everything converting to online there will definitely be a privacy issue in the future. People act freely online currently as they are able to stay pretty anonymous with the right tools. This would allow the government to see more things that they shouldn’t if we were to switch over haphazardly. Having all this information online could also make it easier to steal one’s identity if not carefully implemented. Overall I think it can work well as long as privacy is still respected. Great Post!
In a sense, digital identity already exists (as you’ve pointed out that Alberta has implemented something like this). Governments already have digital records of citizens and their identification. This seems more like a question of whether we should render physical IDs as a method of identification irrelevant or outdated. Perhaps I have a biased view since I live in a place that already has a decent digital system implemented, but I see little difference between if we changed to full digital vs having some physical component.
Hello Daniel. Personally speaking I don’t have much against a digital ID system as well, much less waiting and no registry fees. What I wanted to promote with this article is that we should always exercise our democratic rights to question our governments regardless of how big or small of a matter the concern we raise is. Our governmental entities won’t be damaged by our words but the people running them should always strive for a “better” knowing that their actions will always be evaluated.
Great post! I have to say that transitioning towards a more digital model for IDs seems like a pretty compelling idea. I feel that in today’s age, more and more services are being offered in an online format which is a great way to offer more convenience in what would be considered a tedious task if done in person. Of course, this introduces an issue of digital security and privacy so it may not be the smoothest transition but it will definitely happen sooner or later.
Interesting post! In this day and age of technology, integrating personal information such as the digital ID seems not only necessary but also inevitable. However, my main concern with it is the security vulnerabilities. With everything being online personal information becomes more susceptible to cyber-attacks. As long as security is prioritized I believe that the digital ID would be beneficial to society. You brought up reasonable privacy concerns, so it would be important to look out for its developments and ensure that private information is kept safe.
I strongly agree with your views that Digital ID is not going to change our country to a dictatorial regime but the Government will track some information about the people, as it could realistically allow them to better rule the public but it’s the intrusion of privacy which causes problems here.
Realistically, if digital ID comes to regular use then physical ID’s will soon become redundant as it’s the worse option for both the government and the public but what I am worried about is that the Government will not take cyber security seriously and which can then lead to a major hack causing immense damage.
Insightful post! I definitely would not be in support of a fully digital ID. The vulnerabilities to ordinary citizens would be far greater than they are now. Combined with the general lack of education in the cybersecurity area, we would be looking at an interesting future.
I think that you raise some prescient concerns about the widespread adoption of digital IDs. My chief concern personally is that they would become a necessity for basic participation on the Internet. I could see a lot of well-intentioned, if misguided, politicians advocating their adoption as a means of ensuring public safety and security. I think you’re also correct that sometimes those concerns of a draconian outcome are a bit overblown and sensationalist. I think that the use of digital IDs should be limited to performing governmental functions like accessing government of Canada services, or secure e-voting in the future. It should not be extended to include basic activities on the internet, which are subject to intrusions of privacy enough as it is.
That was an insightful article! Incorporating personally identifiable information digitally using something like a digital ID, appears to be not only important, but also unavoidable in today’s technological era. However, my primary concern is the exploitable security issues. I feel the downside would be the possibility of records being leaked, enabling for certain entities to spoof other people’s data. However, even for physical IDs, the world’s largest biometric database, Aadhar, which held unique identification numbers for Indian citizens, suffered a massive data breach in 2018 that compromised personal information (Aadhar Card information) of around 1.1 billion people. As a conclusion, security is essential either ways, and in this technological world, digitalization also provides improved convenience.
Great post! Personally, I think that digital IDs are a step forward from physical IDs. However, privacy is definitively an important matter to address, especially when it concerns our activities on the web outside of just accessing government services. I never really considered a scenario in which these digital IDs are used to track our online lives. Personally, I feel uncomfortable with the government knowing what I’m doing in my day-to-day life, especially when they don’t need to.