Fears over public ID system to access Govt services online

By RICHARD WOOD

Resistance is brewing over steps to provide a public ID system to access Government services online.

The State Services Commission is preparing a report due mid-year on the subject. It has stated its considerations do not involve a national ID card and will work on an "opt-in" basis.

Last week State Services Minister Trevor Mallard indicated a preference for a single agency to handle password authentication for Government services online.

And two weeks ago the IRD introduced its first password-protected service usable by the public, highlighting the potential for growth in Government ID databases.

But Daryl Webb, director of specialist authentication firm Digital Identity, said it would take a significant mindset change for the public to accept a single Government online authentication system.

Webb said that technologically it was a no-brainer, but "there are too many privacy implications". He said identity theft was already a major issue and "it would make it a damn sight easier".

Webb said the present proposals had "an easier spin" compared with the national ID card concept, but many members of the public would still feel they are losing some control of their identity and privacy.

He is also concerned about the cost of providing the service, both in issuing passwords and providing ongoing support for people who forget passwords.

Peter Harrison, president of the Open Source Society, said many people distrusted the Government with data. He is calling for the job of authenticating people to be done by the banks.

Harrison said the banks already had a lot of the information, were conservative and secure, and were trusted by their customers.

They also had a proven history of implementing reliable secure software to provide internet services wanted by the public, he said.

This is part of a bigger proposal Harrison has for the all-of-government online access concept to be extended to "all-of-New Zealand".

Harrison said there was an urgent need from companies and individuals for a comprehensive authentication system that could be used for the web, emails, electronic documents, and instant messaging systems. This would use modern Public Key Cryptography methods instead of web passwords.

The system would pay for itself due to its benefits over paper communication at a charged out cost of "a couple of dollars a month per company", whereas a Government-only system would hit the public purse.