The issue of verifying identities online has long been a thorny one. Every so often, a politician will stick their head above the parapet and suggest accounts should be verified via official means – uploading a copy of a passport or driving licence, for example – under the guise of protecting children and others from harmful content. Enthusiasm subsequently recedes or is drowned out by people pointing out why it might be a bad idea.
The new year was only a matter of days old when we were treated to the latest instalment of “Future Regrets”.
Step forward Patrick O’Donovan. A new Government digital wallet is on the way and the Minister for Communications wants to use it to push through ID verification for social media accounts.
On the surface, there are good reasons for proposing this. Most pertinently, protecting children from accessing services where they may access inappropriate online content.
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In an interview with the Irish Daily Mail, Mr O’Donovan made that clear, saying there was “no other right that trumps the right of a child to be protected”. He added that “no amount of convincing me that data protection is more important than child protection is ever going to win out”.
A nice soundbite, but data-protection authorities in Europe may disagree. While no right-thinking person will argue against the importance of protecting children, it does not mean the Government should trample on the privacy of the rest of the population.
What platforms will be required to verify ID in this brave new world? Who will oversee the plan and enforce it? What penalties will be imposed on the social media companies that fail to implement these new rules, should they come to pass?
There are also questions about how it could work in practical terms. The borderless nature of the internet presents an obvious issue. There has been no suggestion that other jurisdictions, including the US for example, would follow suit. What would stop people from registering their accounts in other countries, where they do not have to provide a government-issued ID?
What happens if, in the future, governments decide that more platforms should be included, as the “questionable content” they are trying to protect underage users from migrates to new places? That is before we even get into the many good reasons why some people prefer to stay anonymous online and avoid any link to their real life.
Are we heading for another Public Services Card PR disaster? It feels as if the Government is setting itself up for a battle it can’t win.
