EU Digital Identity Wallet Pilots Roll Out Under The Radar

 As 2023 continues, the European Commission appears busy developing and running pilots for its EU Digital Identity Wallet, which it intends to make available to all EU citizens in the near future.

The EU Digital Wallet, often referred to as the EU Digital Identity Wallet, is slated to be offered to the European public in the years ahead. According to the European Commission, "EU Digital Identity Wallets are personal digital wallets allowing citizens to digitally identify themselves, store and manage identity data and official documents in electronic format. These may include a driving licence, medical prescriptions or education qualifications."

Despite these possible harms, as I note for Unlimited Hangout, a near-universal adoption of Digital ID systems increasingly appears inevitable, with "Juniper Research [estimating] that governments will have issued about 5 billion digital ID credentials by 2024, and a 2019 Goode Intelligence report [suggesting] digital identity and verification will be a $15 billion market by 2024.".

Despite its lack of EU member status and war on its hands to boot, Ukraine is involved in the EU Digital Wallet pilots.

Debate or not, Digital Wallet pilot rollouts and EU member states' respective Digital ID adoption is ongoing, with an EC press statement explaining that "Everyone will have a right to have an EU Digital Identity" accepted in all EU Member States.

While the European Commission communicates "There will be no obligation" to use an EU Digital ID Wallet, EC report Communication 2030 Digital Compass: The European Way for the Digital Decade elucidates that a 2030 target for the EU is for 80 percent of citizens to use an "Electronic identification solution." Ultimately, the mixed messaging leaves room for speculation that, even if Digital IDs are not obligatory when introduced, the general population could somehow be nudged or eventually even mandated into adopting Digital IDs to access key public services.

While Digital ID proponents emphasize the tools' capacity for convenience and security in an increasingly online world, the ethical and privacy issues I've highlighted here signal that, if rolled out hastily, the EU Digital Identity Wallets could ultimately have disastrous and lasting consequences for privacy and civil liberties. 

https://brownstone.org/articles/eu-digital-identity-wallet-pilots-roll-out-under-the-radar/