Kiwi ministries pass on digital IDs despite rumors

New Zealand‘s Department of Internal Affairs is claiming strong demand for its new Identity Check verification system among citizens, but important ministries are not involved.

According to Radio New Zealand, Internal Affairs made the claims behind closed doors in May. They were released recently under the Official Information Act.

“The ability for customers to prove their identity in a fully digital channel in real-time has mass appeal,” reads a document seen by RNZ.

However, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, mentioned by the central government in the briefing as one of the early adopters of the digital ID infrastructure, now says it has no plans to deploy Identity Check because the “service in its current form is not suitable for use with the data collected” by the ministry.

The Ministry of Health was also named in the original briefing for potential adopters but, according to RNZ’s reporting, Internal Affairs officials never followed up with a plan to evaluate their interest.

Ministry of Education officials reportedly let the idea drop as well because the government has few if any digital images of children with which to verify identity.

“While some of the agencies we spoke to have advised they are not planning on using the service, we continue to hold discussions with a number of organizations,” a government official said.

According to the RNZ analysis, a possible reason behind the ministers’ skepticism is the fact that many digital ID systems rely on Google’s Analytics service, which creates and processes metadata, often in the United States and thus bypassing local regulations.

At deadline, Internal Affairs officials said they have has not explored concerns about overseas data transfers.

The claims come two months after New Zealand’s land transport management agency said it was working to introduce a mobile driver’s license. The project appears to be separate from Identity Check.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  digital ID  |  face biometrics  |  government services  |  identity verification  |  New Zealand