Singapore, UK, and UAE governments update digital ID platforms

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has published a report on the digital infrastructure necessary to foster the development of a digital economy and support the execution of cross-border transactions around the world, prominently including robust digital ID.

Dubbed the Foundational Digital Infrastructures For Inclusive Digital Economies, the document pinpoints four types of initiatives, or pillars, through which a more effective digital economy can be achieved.

The first of them is digital identity, intended as a way to ensure “authentication and validation of an individual’s identity while protecting privacy and security of information.”

The report also mentions “Authorization and Consent,” “Payment Interoperability,” and “Data Exchange” as the other three pillars.

The document was the result of joint research between MAS, Mastercard, and the central banks of Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Ghana, and Kenya.

The institutions will now build on the report’s results to build a consortium of countries willing to further explore digital ID and infrastructure for cross-border use.

GOV.UK Verify disconnection postponed for two years

Parliamentary Secretary for the Cabinet Office Julia Lopez MP told UK Parliament that Verify’s replacement digital ID platform from the Government Digital Service (GDS) will require more time to be fully operational.

“While this new system is being developed, many users and connected government services continue to rely on GOV.UK Verify, as has been the case during the pandemic,” Lopez explained. “The Government has therefore decided to extend the current Verify service, enabling new users to sign up until April 2022 and existing users to sign in until April 2023.”

Verify has been substantially criticized in the UK since its release due to various technical issues that translated into low take-up by public sector bodies and citizens alike.

It was consequently supposed to be discontinued before the end of the Fall after the UK government had postponed its deactivation to keep up with the large number of digital ID sign-ups for universal credit during the pandemic.

Lopez said that, despite the new 2022 date, the government will regularly provide Parliament with updates relating to the progress of the GDS pilot.

Lleida.net recognized as first private UAE Pass Service Provider

Electronic signature solutions provider Lleida.net has been selected by the United Emirates’ government as the first private provider of UAE Pass Service, the country’s new national digital ID system.

As a result of the new partnership between the company and Smart Dubai City Office, companies will be able to sign electronic contracts with the country’s citizens and residents using Lleida.net’s technology.

The move represents the beginning of large-scale adoption of UAE Pass for digital signature, digital contracting, and registered notifications in the country.

To support the development of new verification technologies at the governmental level, the Smart Dubai City Office has also recently decided to develop a remote face biometrics service for identity verification.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  digital government  |  digital identity  |  financial services  |  government services  |  identity verification  |  online authentication  |  secure transactions  |  Singapore  |  UAE  |  UK