Article: One Wallet, One ID by Dr. Timothy Smith

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The European Union continues to move closer to implementing universal digital identification for all its citizens—the electronic ID from a regulation passed by the European Parliament that governs the EU. In 2014, the European Union passed a regulation called eIDAS or electronic identification, authentication, and trust services ((EU) 910/2014). The eIDAS regulation aims to support an electronic system for digitally verifying the identity of individuals and businesses just as a passport or driver's license does in the material world. In May 2024, the eIDAS Regulation received an update that established a universal digital identity wallet that must be available to all EU citizens by 2026. (European-digital-identity-regulation.com) The digital wallet will allow citizens across the EU to verify their identity, share digital documents, and electronically sign documents online. The wallet will be in an app available on a smartphone.

The digital wallet allows users to maintain their digital personas and control what data they share with other digital systems. Governments and businesses in the EU claim that the digital wallet and ID system will make interactions between citizens and governments easier locally and across borders. Such ease of identification will lower transaction costs and allow businesses to move into different markets more easily. Additionally, members of the European Parliament, such as Carlos Zorrinho, MEP, of the Socialist and Democrats Party in Portugal, argued in the TV show "Talking Europe" that for the EU to stay competitive, it needs to harvest all the rich transactional data that the digital ID system generates that currently, big tech companies such as Google and Meta consume through their ID verification systems. (france24.com) With the help of artificial intelligence, massive data production will help governments and businesses better predict the populace's needs while making life more convenient for its people. What people buy, where they go, what government services they use, and with whom they transact business provides rich data for understanding a population, such as what they value and which way an economy will go.

Not everyone supports the notion of a centralized ID and wallet system due to privacy concerns and, by extension, the loss of liberty a central system could impose. Privacy proponents and cybersecurity practitioners worry that a central ID system with good intentions could, in the wrong hands, lead to a social scoring system such as the one in China that controls individual access to services such as transportation and loans based on their economic, social, and legal behavior. A universal digital ID allows access to information, less cumbersome verification systems, and removes the piecemeal approach to access information and even physical sites such as a rental car or hotel room.

Although some consider the dystopian possibilities of control with a digital ID as farfetched, the deterioration of privacy really affects people's health and safety. Does privacy matter? Yes, it is essential for human health. We even know this from animal health studies that observe animals deprived of privacy will display anxiety and other behaviors, even violence. Studies of pregnant mice have shown that without a hidden place to go, mice can pause their labor until they find a safe place away from the view of other mice. Monkeys in captivity need screens to separate themselves occasionally to get along better. (frontiersin.org) Humans are no exception. We need privacy to protect ourselves from physical and reputational harm. Such a need stems from our basic survival instincts and cannot be underestimated as a mental health component. A universal ID and wallet have clear advantages in convenience and efficiency. Still, the implications of such a mandate require a full cost analysis, which the EU has decided to try in real time.

Dr. Smith’s career in scientific and information research spans the areas of bioinformatics, artificial intelligence, toxicology, and chemistry. He has published a number of peer-reviewed scientific papers. He has worked over the past seventeen years developing advanced analytics, machine learning, and knowledge management tools to enable research and support high-level decision making. Tim completed his Ph.D. in Toxicology at Cornell University and a Bachelor of Science in chemistry from the University of Washington.

You can buy his book on Amazon in paperback and in kindle format here.