11.12.1. "National ID cards are just the driver's licenses on the
Information Superhighway." [unknown...may have been my
coining]
11.12.2. "What's the concern?"
11.12.3. Insurance and National Health Care will Produce the "National
ID" that will be Nearly Unescapable
- hospitals and doctors will have to have the card...cash
payments will evoke suspicion and may not even be feasible
11.12.4. National ID Card Arguments
- "worker's permit" (another proposal, 1994-08, that would
call for a national card authorizing work permission)
- immigration, benefit
- possible tie-in to the system being proposed by the US
Postal Service: a registry of public keys (will they also
"issue" the private-public key pair?)
- software key escrow and related ideas
- "I doubt that one would only have to "flash" your card and
be on your way. More correctly, one would have to submit
to being "scanned" and be on your way. This would also
serve to be a convienient locator tag if installed in the
toll systems and miscellaneous "security checkpoints". Why
would anyone with nothing to hide care if your every move
could be monitored? Its for your own good, right? Pretty
soon sliding your ID into slots in everyplace you go will
be common." [Korac MacArthur, comp.org.eff.talk, 1994-07-
25]
11.12.5. "What are some concerns about Universal ID Cards?"
- "Papierren, bitte! Schnell!
- that they would allow traceability to the max (as folks
used to say)... tracking of movements, erosion of privacy
- that they would be required to be used for banking
transactions, Net access, etc. (As usual, there may be
workarounds, hacks, ...)
- "is-a-person" credentially, where government gets involved
in the issuance of cryptographic keys (a la the USPS
proposal), where only "approved uses" are allowed, etc.
- timestamps, credentials
11.12.6. Postal Service trial balloon for national ID card
- "While it is true that they share technology, their intent
and purpose is very different. Chaum's proposal has as its
intent and purpose to provide and protect anonymity in
financial transactions. The intent and purpose of the US
Postal Service is to identify and authenticate you to the
government and to guarantee the traceability of all
financial transactions." [WHMurray, alt.privacy, 1994-07-
04]
11.12.7. Scenario for introduction of national ID cards
- Imagine that vehicle registrations require presentation of
this card (gotta get those illegals out of their cars, or,
more benignly, the bureaucracy simply makes the ID cars
part of their process).
- Instantly this makes those who refuse to get an ID card
unable to get valid license tags. (Enforcement is already
pretty good....I was pulled over a couple of times for
either forgetting to put my new stickers on, or for driving
with Oregon expired tags.)
+ The "National Benefits Card," for example, is then required
to get license plate tags.and maybe other things, like car
and home insurance, etc. It would be very difficult to
fight such a card, as one could not drive, could not pay
taxes ("Awhh!" I hear you say, but consider the penalties,
the tie-ins with employers, etc. You can run but you can't
hide.)
- the national ID card would presumably be tied in to
income tax filings, in various ways I won't go into here.
The Postal Service, aiming to get into this area I guess,
has floated the idea of electronic filing, ID systems,
etc.
11.12.8. Comments on national ID cards
- That some people will be able to skirt the system, or that
the system will ultimately be unenforceable, does not
lessen the concern. Things can get real tough in the
meantime.
- I see great dangers here, in tying a national ID card to
transactions we are essentially unable to avoid in this
society: driving, insurance (and let's not argue
insurance...I mean it is unavoidable in the sense of legal
issues, torts, etc.), border crossings, etc. Now how will
one file taxes without such a card if one is made mandatory
for interactions with the government? Saying "taxes are not
collectable" is not an adequate answer. They may not be
collectible for street punks and others who inhabit the
underground economy, but they sure are for most of us.
By Tim May, see README
HTML by Jonathan Rochkind