Modern ID systems: Watching a global identity crisis unfold

On International Identity Day, it is time to question whether technology-based identity systems are actually inclusive.

An Indian man gets his retina scanned as he enrolls for Aadhar, India's unique identification project in Kolkata, India. The Aadhar initiative has been repeatedly criticised for data leaks [File: AP Photo/Bikas Das]

“Show me your papers.” We associate those four words with 20th-century state oppression and the separation of citizens from “others” – where an identity card or number was about facilitating survival, not civic participation. Modern biometric and digital wallet-based identity systems have been presented as an opportunity to create more inclusion, enable civic participation and facilitate easier access to healthcare and public services.

Yet on International Identity Day, we are seeing these modern, technology-driven ID systems – adopted by a growing number of countries – continue to facilitate exclusion and surveillance, while exacerbating insecurity and vulnerability for communities that are already among the most marginalised.

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